- WIADOMOŚCI
Russian helicopter shot down in the Voronezh region. 'Friendly fire' of a Su-35
A Russian Mi-8 family multi-purpose helicopter has crashed in the Voronezh Oblast. Russian social media accounts and channels are consistently reporting on the incident.
The entire three-person crew of the aircraft perished in the incident. The causes were not initially disclosed. It was unclear whether it was a technical failure or an accidental shootdown by their own air defence. Later, however, Russian bloggers began reporting that a Russian air superiority fighter misidentified the Mi-8 as a Ukrainian suicide drone and subsequently shot it down. This occurred while the Russians were repelling a wave of Ukrainian suicide drones. It is likely that both Russian aircraft were involved in these operations.
The crash likely took place on 1 October, and the helicopter came down 80 kilometres from Voronezh. This is the 61st confirmed Russian military helicopter from the Mi-8 family to be destroyed since 24 February 2022. At least 11 others have been damaged.
As a result, aircraft of this type are approaching the „record” still held by Ka-52 attack helicopters. That figure stands at a minimum of 66 aircraft destroyed and 8 damaged. Meanwhile, the total number of lost helicopters of all types has risen to at least 174 units, plus 27 damaged.
