Ukraine’s helicopters shoot down up to 40% of Russian drones in assigned sectors
Ukraine’s helicopters have proven successful in intercepting Russian drones, encouraging the country to double down on the tactic while also considering the use of modified light aircraft in this role.
Helicopters down up to 40% of Shahed-style drones
According to reporting by Ukraine’s news outlet, Militaryni, Ukrainian Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi stated Ukrainian helicopter crews are now a critical component of its layered air defence. He stated that helicopters can shoot down up to 40% of Shahed-style drones in their sectors, depending on the weather. He added that Ukraine continues to scale up the use of helicopters.
Syrskyi noted that these helicopters are modernized with specialized systems that allow them to track drones in various modes, including thermal and infrared. These upgrades allow the helicopter to be effective in different weather conditions.
Ukraine is pairing two helicopters to complement each other. One is equipped with weapons to neutralize the drone, while the other is kitted out with advanced sensors guiding the armed helicopter to its target.
Militarnyi also writes that Ukraine is considering integrating light aircraft (including sport, agricultural, and training aircraft) into interception missions. These would be fitted with systems such as R-73 air-to-air missiles. Ukraine is already using SHARK light aircraft with anti-drone electronic warfare pods to counter Russian drones.
Cockpit footage from a Ukrainian Mi-24 Hind helicopter gunship shooting down a Russian Shahed attack drone with its Yak-B gatling gun. pic.twitter.com/nIvxATYGCr
— OSINTtechnical (@Osinttechnical) June 25, 2025
Various Western nations have donated around 80 Soviet-era helicopters (per Oryx) to Ukraine since the start of the full-scale war. This includes around 17 Mi-17V5 US helicopters that it had purchased for the Afghan government before it fell in 2021. These were in Ukraine, undergoing refurbishment at the outbreak of the war.
Many solutions to the Russian drone problem
There is no simple answer to intercepting and destroying swarms of Russian drones. It appears an effective counter is a multi-faceted one that includes everything from traditional (but computer-aimed) flak from German-supplied Gepard self-propelled anti-aircraft guns (SPAAG), to counter-drones, to EW, to helicopters.
Ukraine has also used its new donated F-16 fighter jets to intercept them. One drawback of using fast jets is that they can be dangerous to intercept the slow-moving drones, with the risk of debris being sucked into the engine. Ukraine is thought to have lost at least one F-16 this way.
Another significant development for which little information is publicly available is a new AI-powered drone-interceptor developed by Swift Beat. Swift Beat was founded by former Google CEO Eric Schmidt.
When the hunter becomes the hunted
While Russian helicopters are also shooting down Ukrainian drones, the roles can reverse, with the helicopters becoming the hunted.
Video of the crash of the Russian Mi-8 helicopter from another angle and the aftermath. https://t.co/Q3DyOt2Ael pic.twitter.com/mIjXpE2wcS
— Rob Lee (@RALee85) September 29, 2025
On the morning of 29th September, dramatic footage was released online showing an FPV drone from the 1st Battalion of Unmanned Systems “Hawks of the Heights” destroying a Russian Mi-8 helicopter as it flew low to evade Ukrainian air defences.
While this is not the first time Ukraine has claimed to shoot down a Russian helicopter with an FPV, it is perhaps the most dramatic occasion captured on film.
The videos include both first-person footage from the FPV as it closed in on the chopper and video from other recon drones showing the helicopter bursting into a ball of fire and crashing.
The 1st Unmanned Systems Battalion of the 59th Brigade, released full video showing their FPV drone hitting a Mi-8 helicopter. The strike resulted in the helicopter being destroyed. This video confirms it’s an Mi-8, not an Mi-28 as first reported. pic.twitter.com/xIhsUQDuuB
— Tatarigami_UA (@Tatarigami_UA) September 29, 2025
The hit was also confirmed by Russian Telegram, which added the pilots had somehow survived and had been evacuated. Ukraine is not the only actor that has scored airborne helicopter kills with FPV drones, as rebels in Myanmar also claim to have similarly destroyed a junta Mi-17 helicopter.
