Ukrainian gunners shot down a Russian Shahed strike drone using a heavy machine gun that is part of the AN/TWQ-1 Avenger air defense system.

The first such video was noticed by open-source intelligence (OSINT) analyst @Osinttechnical on X (ex-Twitter).

The footage of the enemy drone being shot down was published by the Air Force Command South of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

The statement states that on the night of April 2, 2025, soldiers of the mobile fire groups from the Odesa anti-aircraft missile brigade destroyed 10 enemy Shahed strike drones with precise fire.

In addition, drones of other types were shot down in the southern direction.

Some of the footage shows the view from the “night” channel of the optical station of the AN/TWQ-1 Avenger air defense system during the downing of a Russian kamikaze drone.

The OSINT analyst notes that this is the first “historical” video capturing Ukrainian operators of this American system shooting down a Russian Shahed drone with the M3P machine gun. The M3P is an aviation modification of the 12.7mm M2 Browning machine gun, with a firing rate doubled to 1200 rounds per minute.

The main weapon of the American Avenger mobile air defense system is eight missiles from the FIM-92 Stinger man-portable air defense system. The heavy machine gun is an auxiliary weapon for close contact situations.

These air defense systems were provided to Ukraine by the United States as part of military aid after 2022. They are involved in shooting down Russian drones and missiles.

The missiles allow the AN/TWQ-1 Avenger to target airborne threats at altitudes of up to 3.8 km and ranges of up to 5.5 km.

Combined with a powerful optical station with night vision and thermal imaging channels, this allows the crew to operate effectively under any weather conditions and at any time of day.

The system is mounted on the chassis of a military HMMWV (Humvee) vehicle. They are actively used by Ukrainian forces, and military mechanics well master their maintenance and repair.