Anatoliy points out the few armored panels that protect him when he flies an old Soviet helicopter on combat missions against Russia. “That’s a joke, it’s not armor,” said the 39-year-old fighter, who has flown some 300 missions in the past year.
At a time when Ukrainian President Volodimir Zelensky is seeking modern weapons from his Western allies, in eastern Ukraine, pilots using very old Soviet-era helicopters admit that Russia is technologically superior to them.
Anatoliy pilots a helicopter built in 1986 in the Soviet Union. This craft was primarily a transport vehicle, but in Ukraine it is used for combat missions, despite the lack of armor.
His is decorated with a hand-made drawing of a guard riding a dragon and the message, “Fight and claim victory. God will help you.”
In operations, the Mi-8s fly accompanied by a Mi-24, a smaller, maneuverable, armored model.
“It is terrifying because they (the Russians) have invented new ways to attack us, to destroy our helicopters,” the Mi-24’s pilot, Vladyslav, said in English.
Ukrainian helicopters fly low to hide from the Russians, but Moscow’s forces can attack them with their fighters at a distance of 140 kilometers, he explained.
“All they need is a missile”
Reconnaissance personnel illuminate these devices with lasers. “That’s why their missiles can hit us,” he said. Their only protection is the flares they throw to confuse the missiles’ heat detectors.
Vladyslav looked at his Mi-24 fighter and said, “This helicopter is 35 years old and I can say that it is a ‘young’ helicopter, because the Mi-8s are 45 years old. Such an old ship suffers from metal fatigue, and Ukraine does not have the capacity to produce new parts. In addition, the fuselage is very vulnerable.
“They only need one rocket to reach us, and the helicopter is shot down,” he recounted. For him, it is necessary to have American Black Hawks and Apaches. “These helicopters are very similar to our Mi-24 and Mi-8 (…) and they have new types of missiles,” he explained.
Andriy, who flies an old Mi-8, agrees. “It’s better to have what the United States and Europe have,” he said. The problem is not only the helicopters, but also the reconnaissance systems used to detect enemy positions, the fighters said.
“A real hell”
“The first month was a real hell. We didn’t know where the enemy air defenses were,” Andriy recalled.
Even now, Russia “can see half of Ukraine,” said Anatoliy, who believes that Ukrainian forces see only “as little as possible.”
Vladyslav told that he covers his face to hide his identity, as he assures that the Russians are looking for the helicopter pilots.
“We are like a treasure in the Army,” he said, explaining that the training of a fighter pilot involves an investment of US$8.1 million.
“We lost many colleagues and many helicopters. I cannot say how many, because it is a secret,” he said.
Some Western officials question the idea of providing Ukraine with the more modern fighters claimed by Kiev, because its pilots will have to be trained.
“It’s only for six months,” Vladyslav said, highlighting the similarities between the Black Hawk and Apache helicopters, and those they use. For Anatoliy, the argument is simple: “When you want to live, you learn fast.”
