Ukraine shares video of Russian helicopter getting blasted out of the sky, the latest in a string of takedowns
- Ukrainian forces have reported taking out multiple Russian helicopters in recent weeks.
- A Ukrainian official on Wednesday shared a video he said shows a strike on a Russian helicopter.
Ukraine's defense minister shared a video he said shows a Russian helicopter getting blasted out of the sky.
The footage shared by Oleksii Reznikov on Wednesday shows a helicopter flying over a vast field before it is shot by a missile.
The helicopter, which appears to be flying alone, bursts into flames but continues to glide for a few seconds before it then plunges to the ground, exploding into a ball of fire and smoke.
Watch the video here:
"Ukrainians love birds very much," Reznikov tweeted alongside the video. "We cannot accept the presence of those disgusting russian metal objects — which scare our fauna — in our skies."
"UAarmy warns: flights to Ukraine are harmful to Russian occupiers," he added.
It is unclear when and where the footage was taken. Insider was unable to independently verify the video.
Ukraine has reported taking out multiple Russian helicopters in recent weeks.
Britain's Ministry of Defence said in an intelligence update last week that there have been at least 23 verified losses of Russian KA-52 attack helicopters in Ukraine since the start of the invasion in February.
"This represents over 25% of the Russian Air Force's in-service fleet of 90 KA-52s and nearly half of Russia's total helicopter losses in Ukraine," the update said.
The Ka-52 helicopter is a single-seat attack helicopter, which has been touted by state media as being a sign of Russia's military might, The Kyiv Post reported.
On Monday, Ukrainian forces sabotaged an airbase deep inside Russia, close to the Latvian border, planting explosives inside the military helicopters, CNN reported.
Two Ka-52s were destroyed at the airfield located in the Pskov region, and two more were seriously damaged, Ukraine's military intelligence agency said.