Ukraine Destroys Russian "Alligator" Attack Helicopter Worth $16 Million.

James Coleman | 13th May, 2024.

Photo Credit: Getty Images

After a Ukrainian battalion claimed to have shot down a Russian fighter plane over the weekend, Kyiv's military announced on Monday that Russia had lost one of its highly valued helicopters in eastern Ukraine.

Ukraine's Defense Ministry announced on X (former Twitter) that the 47th Mechanized Brigade of Ukraine downed the Ka-52 "Alligator" attack helicopter in the hotly contested eastern Ukrainian city of Avdiivka. After months of ferocious combat, Russia has been in possession of Avdiivka since February 2024. Significant equipment losses and high casualty rates have resulted from battles west of the city.

Approximate value of each Ka-52 is $16 million, according to the Ukrainian government.

The Ka-52 helicopters, which can reach a maximum speed of 186 miles per hour and are intended to attack tanks, military vehicles, helicopters, and personnel, have been targeted by Ukraine on multiple occasions, according to Russian state military exporter Rosoboronexport.

The Ka-52 is one of the "most influential Russian weapons systems," according to the British Defense Ministry, which also stated in July 2023 that it has cost Ukrainian troops operating in the south of the nation a "heavy cost."

According to the U.K. government at the time, Russia most certainly upgraded its fleet of helicopters with Ka-52 models, giving them more firepower to launch anti-tank missiles with a range of about nine miles.

According to military officials in Ukraine, Moscow's forces have lost 325 helicopters in all, and on Monday, the Ka-52 Ukraine claims to have shot itself down.

The 110th Separate Mechanized Brigade of Ukraine claimed to have shot down a Russian Su-25 fighter on Saturday, but it provided no other information regarding the attack's location or date.

Russian jet "will keep falling," the brigade declared in a statement posted on the social media .

"Thank you for shooting down another Russian Su-25 aircraft!" Speaking of the brigade, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky stated in his evening speech on Saturday.

He claimed that the 110th Separate Mechanized Brigade shot down a Russian Su-25 over the eastern Donetsk region earlier this month.

In the course of the more than two years of the conflict, Russia has lost 350 aircraft in all, the Ukrainian military stated on Monday. Russia had lost around ten percent of its fleet of aircraft, according to General Christopher Cavoli, the director of U.S. European Command, who reported this to Congress in the United States in mid-April.