This is the movie-like moment Russian soldiers spray bullets at enemy targets while flying low over a field in a flight of Mi-8 killer copters.
The Russian military said the video shows soldiers using “small arms” on a Ukrainian reconnaissance team they encountered in a field on their flight path while carrying out their own intelligence work.
The Russian Ministry of Defense (MoD) said on June 13: “Fire to kill: the work of the fire support group.
“The crew of the Mi-8 helicopter, performing visual reconnaissance, discovered an enemy reconnaissance and sabotage group along the flight path.
“The fire support group from the Mi-8 helicopter opened fire with small arms.”
Like a scene from Apocalypse Now, the footage shows Russian gunners unleashing bullets at enemy targets while flying low over the field.
We contacted Russian and Ukrainian officials for comment but had not received a reply at the time of writing.
Russian troops invaded Ukraine on February 24 in what the Kremlin is still calling a “special military operation.” June 14 marks the 111th day of the campaign.
The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine reported that between February 24 and June 14, Russia had lost 32,500 personnel, 1,434 tanks, 3,503 armored fighting vehicles, 721 artillery systems, 229 multiple launch rocket systems, 97 anti-aircraft systems, 213 warplanes, 179 helicopters, 2,473 motor vehicles and fuel tankers, 13 warships/boats, 588 drones, 54 pieces of special equipment and 125 cruise missiles.
A huge fire is reportedly raging at a chemical plant in Sievierodonetsk as street-to-street fighting between Ukrainian and Russian forces takes place in the city.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said that Russian attacks on the cities of Sievierodonetsk and Lysychansk has turned them into “dead cities”, but added that Ukrainian forces could still hold Sievierodonetsk despite being outnumbered.
The United Kingdom and the United States are sending long-range missile systems to Ukraine. Russian President Vladimir Putin has warned of more attacks in Ukraine if the West sends long-range weapons.
President Putin has said that the West will not be able to wean itself off from Russian oil and gas for years. US officials have now also admitted that Russian profits on energy might even be higher than they were before the war started.
On June 8, the European Parliament adopted a resolution recommending that the European Union grant Ukraine the status of candidate country for EU membership. Some 438 MEPs voted in favor of the resolution, with 65 voting against and 94 abstaining.
