Huge losses for the Russians. Experts confirmed the destruction of equipment worth millions of dollars
9:20 AM EDT, October 23, 2023
The creators of the Oryx blog, whose aim is to document the equipment losses suffered by Russia in the conflict with Ukraine, have confirmed information about the destruction of nine Russian helicopters. According to their data, seven of them were Ka-52-type machines, and two were Mi-8 helicopters. These destructions allegedly took place during the Ukrainian attack on airports in Berdyansk and Luhansk - this information was shared on Monday by the independent portal Meduza.
According to data gathered by the authors of the Oryx blog, an additional eight Ka-52 helicopters and seven Mi-8s were damaged. It's worth noting, however, that the blog authors made cautious estimates and also counted those machines that are no longer repairable. Jakub Janovsky, an author of the blog, wrote on platform X - "These are probably irreparable losses, but it can't be confirmed without sufficient evidence".
The attack on the airports in Berdiansk and Luhansk, two cities occupied by Russia in Ukraine, took place on the night of October 16 to 17 Eastern Time. According to media information, it was the first case of the Ukrainian army using ATACMS ballistic missiles, recently delivered to it by the United States.
In July of this current year, British intelligence estimated that since the beginning of the invasion of Ukraine, Russia likely lost about 40 Ka-52 attack helicopters, also known as Alligators. Estimates from October 2022 indicate that the Russian fleet of Ka-52 helicopters counted 90 units. The value of one such machine is approximately 16 million dollars.
The Mi-8 transport helicopters, which are based on Soviet construction from the 1960s, are machines commonly used in the Russian armed forces. They have a universal application, and over the years, dozens of their versions have been developed, including assault, passenger, and Arctic ones. Russia has sold a large number of Mi-8 helicopters, including to India and China.
The creators of the Oryx blog are focused on documenting visual evidence of equipment losses in Ukraine, both on the Ukrainian and Russian sides. The estimates they provide only concern those losses that are confirmed by photos or video recordings.
