technical advantages over the use of fighters

In addition to the anti-aircraft defenses deployed across the entire battlefield, Drones feed some companions of the atmospheric environment: helicopters. Unmanned aircraft, such as those in Spain, have become one of the most popular weapons since the start of the conflict in Ukraine in early 2022 and, even today, remain a powerful tactical vector.

However, increasingly, these Rotary-wing military aircraft have specialized in shooting them down in flight.. They use their technical and aerodynamic superiority to catch up with the drones and then adapt their altitude and speed. The next step is to activate the on-board weapons, eliminate the threat and search for the next target.

This abysmal difference in air capabilities has become evident in recent days due to the Publication of a series of videos recorded from helicoptersin which Ukrainian military personnel shoot down Russian drones without too many complications. On August 25, images appeared on the social network

The soldier operating the machine gun was aiming directly at the Shahed plane, according to The Aviatoruntil finally reaches the target and begins to fall leaving some remains of the fuselage along the way. This is a model manufactured by Iran, actively involved in Russia since Moscow and Tehran signed a supply contract in late 2022.

A second video appeared on reddit also showing a Ukrainian helicopter – on this occasion a Mi-24 – trying to take down another Shahed at an undisclosed location on the war front. This air combat The air force is also present in Israel, where Netanyahu’s air force recently published how a helicopter shot down a Samad drone in Lebanon using its machine gun.

The advantages of the helicopter

Deploy Helicopters as anti-drone platforms have some advantages over fighters for the same purpose. Although there is currently no cost alternative to land-based systems. This is one of the most important areas in war-torn economies, where the aforementioned helicopters are less demanding in terms of maintenance and fuel consumption than fixed-wing alternatives with similar capabilities.

Furthermore, helicopters generally use cheaper ammunition, like the machine guns or cannons seen in the published videos, instead of guided missiles costing thousands of euros each. It is thus possible to partly balance the difference in costs between the drone to be destroyed and the munitions used for this purpose, a very current issue in both the Ukrainian and Israeli theaters.

Beyond the purely economic plan, helicopters offer greater flexibility than a fixed-wing aircraft. For example, they can operate from virtually any location with minimal obstacle conditions and no complex infrastructure such as a runway.

They can also fly at a lower speed and altitude than fighters, even at the same level as slow drones which are the ones that usually perform swarm attacks. There are faster unmanned aircraft that use rocket or jet engines that are much faster and impossible to shoot down simply using the machine gun installed on the helicopter.

The helicopters are “optimized for low-altitude, low-speed flight in long-range operations and They are more effective in combat air patrols against drones in the case of point defense“, they explain. The Aviator. Although they are not always as effective. On August 25, a Ukrainian drone managed to shoot down a Russian helicopter of the same model as the one used by the Kiev army to shoot down the Shahed.

He The Mi-8 is the most produced helicopter in history —exceeds 17,000 units and remains in production— and also one of those that gathers the most variants using the same platform. It took flight for the first time in July 1961 in the Soviet Union for a wide range of uses ranging from passenger transport on commercial flights to adaptations prepared for war.

On the other hand, the Mi-24 It was designed for a helicopter with a high attack capability. and as a Soviet response to the American models that proliferated in the midst of the Cold War. It entered service in 1972 and continues to roll off the assembly lines today.

In the Ukrainian case, the currently operational version is the Mi-24P Hind-F, which began in the early 2010s an upgrade to the Mi-24PU1 version. This is an updated platform that integrates missiles like the S-8 with which Zelensky’s air force has already wreaked havoc to certain critical Russian infrastructure.

Although airplanes are also used

In addition to helicopters, the Ukrainian Air Force has been using Yak-52 aircraft to shoot down dronesOne of the latest published examples occurred last April, when one of these planes managed to shoot down a Russian spy platform.

The Yak-52B variant, the one shown in the video, retains the ability to carry pods for machine guns and unguided rockets, although only one unit was produced with this configuration, according to Military. Therefore, the Russian drone is probably was shot dead by the second crew member with an automatic weapon incorporated on board, similar to the way their compatriots operate on helicopters.

This aircraft model belongs to the Soviet era and took its first flight in 1976. Its design meets Moscow’s need for a trainer for the first stages of training and before moving on to jet fighters.

The Yak-52 has a cockpit for two occupants – student and instructor – with an all-metal fuselage and a single engine. Stands out for its acrobatic qualities which gives it great maneuverability, in addition to being recognized for its robust structure.

In addition to its role as a training aircraft, this model was also used several times for air-to-ground attacks low intensity. Mainly in variants with underwing anchors compatible with certain weapons.