In addition to combat aircraft, various air defense systems, UAV interceptors, and mobile fire groups, Ukrainian skies are also being defended from russian drones with the help of a converted An-28 civilian transport aircraft. This has already resulted in the downing of nearly 120 drones.
According to the French channel TF1, whose correspondents joined one of the combat sorties, five drones were intercepted during the operation. Footage shows an M134 Minigun being used to take down drones, as is typical for helicopters on such missions.
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As for the process itself, the dispatcher first directs the aircraft to the area where Russian drones have been spotted. Then, the crew must locate the target visually and the gunner manually shoots it down with a machine gun.
The An-28 crew consists of civilians who have decided to help the military defend the skies. At the same time, drones are intercepted in safe areas—over fields and forests, never over residential areas.
From Defense Express we would like to note that this is an interesting example of using all available resources to counter enemy UAVs. The possibility of involving civilian aircraft in such tasks was approved in June 2025.
At the same time, this method has limitations for detecting and shooting down drones, as it relies entirely on the crew's eyesight and the dispatcher's instructions, which makes it much harder to operate at night. Specialized equipment would be helpful, but given that this is a volunteer-operated private aircraft, it is probably not feasible without state funding.
As for the An-28, the first information about its use as a "drone fighter" appeared in the fall of 2025. At the time, it was an uncontrolled leak of information, but now it has been officially released, and foreign journalists have been allowed to attend.
While designed in Kyiv, the aircraft was built in Poland, which also created an assault variant known as the MC-145B SOMA. The latter received additional equipment, including surveillance and detection devices, as well as improved weapons, such as APKWS anti-drone rockets.
Negotiations are also underway to purchase light combat aircraft to serve as "drone fighter." Although the issue of Czech L-159s has been closed due to the government's position, the manufacturer is now offering its new L-39NG Skyfox.
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