A Russian Mi-8 helicopter makes an erroneous landing at a Ukrainian airfield in Poltava.

Russian propagandist Ilya Tumanov, who administers the aviation-themed Fighterbomber channel, reported this.

According to his version, the crew of the military transport helicopter “lost its bearings” and crossed the Russian-Ukrainian border. The Russian lists a navigation system failure or a “radio game” by the Ukrainian Armed Forces as the possible reasons for the disorientation.

Tumanov claims that the crew visually identified the airfield and proceeded to land. After landing, the helicopter was allegedly fired upon, killing two crew members and wounding the commander.

According to the propagandist, the incident occurred “a few weeks ago”. He urged the Russian audience not to spread “other versions” of the incident.

It is worth noting that the distance from Poltava to the nearest section of the state border with the Russian Federation is more than 100 kilometers. Given the speed of the Mi-8, this means that the aircraft was in Ukrainian space for at least 20 minutes.

It seems unlikely that during this time, a visible and relatively slow target was not shot down by the air defense systems covering the border, the air defense systems guarding Poltava’s airspace, or the security guards of the airfield itself.

If the fact that the Mi-8 flew from Russia to Poltava is confirmed, there may be other reasons for the incident. One of them is a preliminary agreement with the crew on a “green corridor” through the Ukrainian air defense system.

In the spring of 2022, the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine established the official level of rewards for the Russian equipment voluntarily transferred to the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Under the current law, the crew could receive $500,000 for a combat helicopter.

The law also ensures the secrecy of the transfer of equipment and further guarantees for the organizers of such a transfer. Ukraine guarantees a safe stay on its territory, the issuance of documents with new personal data, and the family’s departure to third countries.

It is possible that the information presented by Ilya Tumanov is disinformation published for unknown purposes by his curators from the Russian security forces.