Ukrainian Magura V5s Take Out Three Russian Helicopters

The Ukrainian Defense Ministry's GUR, a military intelligence agency, destroyed two Russian Mi-8 helicopters using the Magura V5 naval drone and missiles on December 31, the Defense Intelligence of Ukraine (DIU) reported.

The DIU detailed that the special forces of the "Group 13" unit were responsible for the destruction of the helicopters in an operation in the Black Sea near Crimea.

Newsweek reached out to the Ukrainian and Russian defense minstries for comment via email outside normal business hours.

Why It Matters

Ukraine's downing of two Russian Mi-8 helicopters, as well as damaging another with the Magura V5 naval drone, is significant because it is a first with this type of drone, and it highlights Ukraine's success in Crimea. As the war has progressed, Kyiv has increased its strikes on the occupied territory, which was annexed in 2014, and has had success in destroying Russian assets there since 2023.

Russian soldiers board an Mi-8 helicopter during a training session in Moscow on December 3. Ukraine recently made history by using a Magura V5 naval drone to down several Russian Mi-8 helicopters in a battle... Alexey Maishev/Associated Press

What To Know

Ukraine's DIU also said that the GUR not only destroyed two Russian helicopters but killed members of the crews on Moscow's ships in the area. The Group 13 unit also managed to hit and damage another helicopter, but it landed safely.

The use of the Magura V5 naval drone made history as it was the first time a sea drone has taken down an aerial target. The drone, which was equipped with R-73 SeeDragon missiles, struck the Russian helicopters during a battle in the Black Sea near Cape Tarkhankut in occupied Crimea.

Following Ukraine's downing of the two Russian Mi-8 helicopters, the GUR released video footage of the attack on X, formerly Twitter.

The GUR later released what it claims to be a transmission from a Russian pilot flying one of the helicopters. In the audio, the pilot said that "There was a clap—they hit me. There was a water launch. After that, there was another flash. I didn't see where it went, but the first one went straight to me and exploded somewhere nearby—I felt from the helicopter that some systems had failed."

Capable of conducting long-range missions, the Magura V5 naval drone has a top speed of 78 kilometers per hour (42 knots), an operational range of up to 800 kilometers (497 miles), and 200-kilogram (440-pound) explosive payload, which makes it crucial to destroying Russian assets in Crimea. The Magura V5 naval drone has also been used to destroy or damage 15 Russian naval vessels and sunk one of Moscow's warships earlier that week.

What People Are Saying

Defense Intelligence of Ukraine, on X: "The record has been updated. Magura missiles destroyed two Russian helicopters in the Black Sea."

Yaroslav Trofimov, chief foreign affairs correspondent for the Wall Street Journal, wrote: "Ukraine ambushed Russian combat helicopters off Crimea on New Year's Eve using surface to air missiles fired by naval drones — the first such known successful combat use. According to Russian war analysts, two Mi-8 gunships were downed and their crews killed — the worst single-day toll for Russian helicopter forces since 2022. Naval drones as stealth SAM batteries can transform warfare."

Kirill Budanov, the head of the Ministry of Defense's GUR, according to RBC-Ukraine: "Today was the first time a helicopter was shot down, it fell into the water. That is, the fact of the destruction of an air target over the Black Sea has been recorded. The second one, by the way, was also shot down. It managed to reach the airfield and make an emergency landing."

What Happens Next

Ukraine may increase its use of the Magura V5 naval drone in battles with Russia near Crimea and continue to strike down Moscow's vessels to reclaim the territory that has been occupied for 11 years.