Ukraine’s special ops forces say they just scored a battlefield first: taking out a Russian helicopter with a ‘deep strike’ drone

• Ukraine’s special operations forces said they downed a Russian Mi-8 helicopter with a long-range strike drone.
• They said the move was a first and that they’re “changing the rules of the game: now we hunt!”
• Both sides need helicopters in this war, but they are increasingly vulnerable to drones and other threats.

Ukraine’s special operators said Saturday they took down a Russian Mi-8 helicopter with a long-range “deep strike” drone for the first time.

The update didn’t say where it happened, but it stressed the significance. They described the move as “changing the rules of the game: now we hunt!”

Video released by Ukraine’s Special Operations Forces appears to be footage from the drone as it flew over an enemy helicopter, drawing steadily closer before the clip cuts off. Business Insider could not independently verify the SOF’s account of the engagement, and the video did not show the final moments for the helicopter.

You can watch the video here:

Deep strike drones are uncrewed aerial systems that are designed to reach far into enemy territory, and they have become key for Ukraine’s fight back against Russia’s invasion as it faces shortages of missiles and also restrictions on how it can use some of the long-range weapons it has received from Western allies.

Ukraine’s own defense industry has developed new types of deep strike drones, along with a host of other drone types, that it has used to target Russian troops and weaponry, to gather intelligence, and to hit deep into Russia. Now, apparently, they’re taking on other missions.

Russian Mi-8 Soviet-era helicopters have often been tasked with hunting Ukrainian drones in this war. They also fly troop transport and air assault missions, cargo and logistical support flights, evacuation runs, and armed support missions.

Ukraine also flies the Mi-8 and uses its helicopters to hunt Russian drones. It is forming a new helicopter unit dedicated to stopping them.

Helicopters, in this war, have been used for air defense and for low and fast missions, including ones where they may fly just a few feet above the ground. The counter-drone mission for these helicopters has been critical for Ukraine as it battles huge barrages amid persistent shortages in overall air defense capacity.

Ukraine’s military commander in chief, Oleksandr Syrskyi, said in September that helicopters can shoot down up to 40% of the Russian drones in their coverage areas, depending on the weather.

Russia has used both Mi-8 helicopters and Ka-52 attack helicopters regularly in this war, but their use has come at a cost, as it has for Ukraine. These aircraft are slower than fighter jets and vulnerable to not just traditional air defenses, but also other threats. Ukraine previously claimed a strike against a Ka-52 Alligator with a US-made rocket artillery system.

New technology created during this war has also proved deadly for Russian helicopters. Ukraine said last year that it destroyed a Russian Mi-8 with a missile that was launched from a naval drone, a weapon Ukraine developed initially for hunting Russian warships. It said that it was also a battlefield first when it engaged the helicopter.