A Russian Su-35 fighter jet shot down a Russian military Mi-8 helicopter in the Voronezh Region after mistaking it for a drone, killing all three crew members on board, according to multiple Russian pro-war Telegram channels — including Fighterbomber, which is linked to the Russian Aerospace Forces. Ukrainian sources also reported that the helicopter had been shot down.
According to the Telegram channel Dossier Shpiona (lit. “Spy Dossier”) the incident occurred Oct. 1 while Russian forces were repelling a large-scale drone attack. The Su-35 crew mistakenly identified the Mi-8 as an unmanned aerial vehicle and opened fire. The helicopter crashed in the Anninsky District of the Voronezh Region, about 80 kilometers from the city of Voronezh. The pilot, navigator and gunner were killed.
Fighterbomber did not explicitly state the cause of the incident, writing that:
“It’s a classic problem that humanity will likely never overcome, despite AI, robots, neural networks, ‘friend or foe’ systems, and other wonders of science and technology. All of which pale in comparison to His Majesty the f---ing idiot.”
The Telegram channel Oko Hora (lit. “Eye of Horus”) reported that the Mi-8 was on a takeoff pad and began lifting off after a drone alert was declared, after which it came under fire from the Su-35. The channel said the helicopter was mistaken for a drone.
The Ukrainian Telegram channel Ukraine Context reported Russia’s loss of a Mi-8 in the Voronezh Region before the Spy Dossier post was published. The channel later said preliminary data indicated that a Russian Su-35 had shot down the Mi-8 after mistaking it for a drone. The channel In Factum also reported that the crew was killed, while Ukrainian outlet UNIAN said the helicopter was downed by Russian forces.
The Voronezh Region came under a large-scale drone attack on the evening of Oct. 1. Regional governor Alexander Gusev said 62 drones were destroyed over two urban areas and six other districts in the region.
It was not the first reported loss of a Russian Mi-8 during efforts to repel a Ukrainian drone attack. Overnight into March 4, a Russian military helicopter crashed in the settlement of Dudki in the Rostov Region, about 2.5 kilometers from the Millerovo military airfield. According to the independent Russian publication Astra, the Mi-8 was shot down by Russian air defenses and crashed into a local farmer’s barn. All three crew members were killed, and no civilians were injured. Sources in Russia’s Emergency Situations Ministry confirmed the circumstances of the crash and the deaths of the crew.
