Ukrainian MiG-29 Destroys Russian Shahed with R-73 Missile

A MiG-29 fighter jet of the Ukrainian Air Force has destroyed a Russian Shahed kamikaze drone with a R-73 missile.

A video of the interception of the enemy drone was posted by the fighter pilot on Instagram.

The video shows the launch of an R-73 air-to-air guided missile that hits a Russian Shahed-136 kamikaze drone.

The target was captured by the missile’s infrared seeker at a relatively short distance of 1.5 to 2 km.

Intercepting small airborne targets using airborne weapons at such distances is quite dangerous, due to the possibility of debris hitting the aircraft’s engine.

Nevertheless, the pilot managed to successfully destroy the Russian kamikaze drone, which was immediately blown up by a R-73 missile.

The R-73 carries about 7 kg of explosives in its warhead, which is enough to destroy not only drones but also larger aerial targets.

In addition, the MiG-29 aircraft is capable of locking on an air target using both the onboard radar and the PrNK-29A electro-optical target acquisition designation system.

Helicopters have also been involved in shooting down Russian kamikaze drones recently. Enemy kamikaze drones were intercepted by Mi-8 transport helicopters, which destroyed them with onboard turret guns.

One such incident occurred on August 20, 2024, when an onboard gunner of a Mi-8 helicopter of the Army Aviation shot down a Russian Shahed-136 attack drone.

When the helicopter and the kamikaze drone were at a relative speed level, the turret gunner with a FN MAG 7.62mm machine gun began firing in its direction.

Recently, a Ukrainian Mi-8 helicopter was shot down by a Russian Shahed attack drone with fire from a nose-mounted machine gun.