In combat operations against the Armed Forces of Ukraine, russia is using a total of 95 Mi-24 and Mi-35 helicopters, 75 Ka-52 helicopters and 55 Mi-28 helicopters, amounting to 225 attack helicopters in total. These figures are based on the fact that at least 30% of the total available fleet of russian helicopters cannot be used due to various technical problems.
Against this backdrop, some Western military officials have reason to say that russian helicopters have become the "worst nightmare" for Ukrainian warriors. However, it's unclear what can be done with this data, other than considering it.
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In its publication, Janes cites Italian Army Lieutenant Colonel Emiliano Pellegrini, who provided the data on the number of attack helicopters used by the russian federation in battles against the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
He cited these figures during his speech at the IQPC International Military Helicopter (IMH) 2025, which is currently taking place in London. An emotional assessment was made there, stating that russian attack helicopters had been transformed from "easy targets" to the "worst nightmare" for the Defenders of Ukraine, due to changes in tactics and improved helicopter capabilities.
The fact that Lieutenant Colonel Pellegrini of the Italian Army represented the Joint Air Power Competence Centre (JAPCC) at this conference gives some credibility to these words. However since there were only estimates and no conclusions, it is unclear what to do with this data.
On the one hand, the above figures provide a clear understanding of what types of attack helicopters russia is most actively using in the war against Ukraine. It turned out to be the Mi-24/35 helicopters, not the most commonly mentioned Ka-52 and Mi-28. According to The Military Balance 2024, at the beginning of last year, russia had a total of 108 Mi-24 and 56 Mi-35 helicopters, 65 Ka-52 and 20 Ka-52M, and about 100 Mi-28s of all modifications. In total, these are 340 attack helicopters, with 225 used for combat operations.
On the other hand, according to the Italian representative of the JAPCC, it remains unclear what the Alliance intends to do with this data. That is, whether NATO plans to invest more resources in its army air defense in order to be able to counter not only enemy UAVs, but also enemy attack helicopters.
Another question is whether NATO countries will change their plans to acquire new helicopters or modernize existing ones, including a combination of helicopters and drones.
Earlier Defense Express reported about new russian weapon hybrid such as AK-630 naval gun on a KamAZ truck.
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