A Ukrainian first-person-view (FPV) drone hit a Russian Mi-28 attack helicopter over Russia's Kursk Oblast on Aug. 6, a source in the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) told the Kyiv Independent on Aug. 7.
The drone, operated by the Special Operations Center "A" of the SBU, managed to hit the helicopter's tail rotor, the source said, calling it "a unique special operation in military history."
Footage of the FPV drone ramming into the helicopter began circulating social media on Aug. 6. A day later, the full video was published by Ukrainian activist Serhii Sternenko.
While the source said that the helicopter was shot down, it is not immediately clear from the video what happened to the aircraft after the attack.
Russian military blogger Alexei Zemtsov, who runs the channel Voevoda Veshchaet, wrote on the evening of Aug. 6 that a Russian helicopter was hit and was forced to land. Zemtsov claimed that the crew survived and the aircraft was sent to repairs, but he did not specify its model.
According to Sternenko and several other observers, this is the first case of a successful hit by an FPV drone against a helicopter mid-air.
"The SBU once again demonstrated a high level of professionalism, creativity, and innovation in destroying the enemy. We still have many unexpected surprises for Russia," the source said.
The Kyiv Independent could not verify all the claims.
At least one similar but unconfirmed claim appeared on July 31. Forbes wrote at the time that, according to Russian military bloggers, a Ukrainian drone successfully destroyed Russia's Mi-8 transport helicopter in the sky near occupied Donetsk.
The outlet linked to a photo of what it presented as the burning Mi-8 wreckage but provided no visual evidence of the aircraft being hit by the drone.
Moscow claimed that Ukrainian forces crossed the border into Kursk Oblast on Aug. 6, resulting in clashes on Russian soil.
Though Kyiv has largely refused to comment on the fighting in the area, the crowd-sourced monitoring website DeepState said that one Russian Ka-52 attack helicopter and at least two tanks were destroyed in the battle.
The source's comments are another indication that Ukrainian forces are active in Kursk Oblast.
Francis Farrell
