Russia has far greater air power, but Ukrainian helicopter units are flying combat missions to support troops on the ground as they try to oust the invaders.
DONETSK REGION, Ukraine — The two helicopters flew low and loud in eastern Ukraine, thwop-thwopping over tilled black soil. They skimmed small lakes glinting in the early-morning light. They glided across tributaries in the rolling hills that knot the region, cloaking themselves from lurking Russian fighter jets.
The brigade’s work is part of a larger eastern Ukrainian operation against Russian forces to retake ground in the area of Bakhmut, scene of some of the war’s fiercest combat. Crews said they were involved in recent missions to support infantry and hit enemy positions in Andriivka, a strategic village south of Bakhmut. Ukrainian officials, which would allow forces to pressure Russian supply lines. The claims were disputed by Moscow, and fighting is ongoing there.
Tuesday’s mission was a success, the crews said, as they awaited a damage assessment from surveillance drones.The work begins when a target is identified. Only then can senior leaders get started on the math problem before them. Given the distances and technology, the crews must fire their weapons at the right place and right time, while flying at speeds up to 124 miles an hour.
The crews are offered possible routes, he said, often through the low-slung hills of the Donetsk region that mask their presence from electronic warfare and antiaircraft fire. They fly low on approach to avoid radar detection, about 30 feet off the ground, but over fields they drop to scarecrow level — roaring at roughly six feet.
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