Navy Mi-8 Destroyed 12 Shahed Drones in Just 3 Hours

The crew of a Mi-8 helicopter from the Ukrainian Navy’s Naval Aviation destroyed 12 Russian Shahed kamikaze drones in just three hours.

The corresponding video was released by the press service of the Navy.

The crew used onboard weapons to engage the targets. The enemy drones were intercepted over the sea, minimizing the likelihood of debris falling on residential areas.

At the same time, the crew faced significant risk — flight conditions over the sea are much more challenging than over land. In addition, there is always the threat of countermeasures from Russian aviation.

The use of helicopters to intercept enemy drones is far from the first time. The active involvement of army aviation in UAV interception began as early as the summer of 2024.

The need to use army aviation to destroy drones arose after Russian drones began flying higher and higher.

The effectiveness of using helicopters depends on many factors, including crew training and the timely detection of enemy targets.

Intercepting targets using onboard weapons poses a threat to the crew. If a strike on the warhead of a kamikaze drone misses, it could detonate and strike the helicopter with debris if the helicopter gets too close.

The Army Aviation has special Mi-8 helicopters for such missions, equipped with onboard electro-optical stations with day and night channels, situational awareness systems, and an onboard weapons suite.

In particular, these helicopters are equipped with M134 machine guns.