Military intelligence: Russian Mi-8 helicopter destroyed at Samara's air base

Photo for illustrative purposes: A Russian Mi-8 military helicopter flies over a joint Russian and Turkish convoy (not pictured) as it patrols oil fields near the town of al-Qahtaniyah, Syria, on Feb. 4, 2021. (Delil Souleiman/AFP via Getty Images)

A Mi-8 transport helicopter was destroyed at the Kryazh air base in Russia’s city of Samara on April 17, according to Ukraine’s military intelligence agency (HUR).

While Kyiv did not claim responsibility for the incident, HUR shared a video on Telegram showing a fire at night.

Mi-8 is a Soviet-era aircraft used most commonly as a transport aircraft by both the Russian military and civilian government departments. The helicopter has an estimated price tag of around $10-15 million.

“The aggressor used this helicopter in the war against Ukraine to transport weapons and personnel,” the agency reported.

The Kyiv Independent could not immediately verify these claims.

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Russia’s total losses during the all-out war amount to about 672 aircraft — 347 planes and 325 helicopters, according to Ukraine’s General Staff.

The General Staff’s figure could not be independently verified.

There have been multiple reports since the start of the full-scale invasion about fires and other acts of sabotage within Russia and the Ukrainian territories occupied by Moscow.

Earlier, Ukraine’s Security Service (SBU) attacked a Russian modernized Nebo-U long-range radar system in Bryansk Oblast, a source at SBU told the Kyiv Independent on April 16.