"The enemy's Alligator helicopter, along with its crew, was struck by a portable anti-aircraft missile system and "fertilized the soil" in the Avdiivka direction," Tarnavskyi reported on Telegram.
"The news is fantastic, in my opinion, on many counts. The number of these helicopters in the russian arsenal is decreasing, and their production is not the same as pulling a T-62 out of storage or, I would say, not even producing a T-90 at the Uralvagonzavod. But there is a nuance. The helicopter was shot down with a MANPADS. Optimal conditions for the front line are 3-4 km. In other words, did the Ka-52 approach the frontline so closely that it was shot down with a MANPADS? Why? Simply because it was used as compensation for artillery, for attacks using rocket pods in a dive-bombing method," said a military-political analyst Oleksandr Kovalenko.
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According to Kovalenko, there are several scenarios for such an event: the russians lack artillery systems on the Avdiivka direction, so they started using the Ka-52 as an improvised air-artillery system.
However, most likely, this happened because russian forces are trying to expedite the capture of Avdiivka by all available means. And now, helicopters are sent into combat for maximum proximity.
"In general, the episode in terms of technical component losses is very positive, but in terms of the trend of the russian command "at any cost," not particularly," adds a military-political analyst.
Reminder, the Ka-52 Alligator is an enhanced twin-seat version of russia's Ka-50 attack helicopter, specifically engineered for the destruction of enemy armored and unarmored ground targets, tanks, low-speed aerial targets, and personnel.
According to the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, as of the morning of February 9th, the occupiers have lost 332 aircraft and 325 helicopters in Ukraine.
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