Conflicts

The case surrounding the disappearance of a Russian helicopter in October 2023 has been brought to court in Sebastopol. Last May, Captain Igor Pashkov went to court to admit his mistake. 

On October 18, 2023, a Russian Mi-8 helicopter disappeared in Crimea. It wasn't until May 2024 that Pashkov, “a deputy air defense officer on duty at the time” according to The Moscow Time, admitted that he was behind the destruction of the craft. According to the report, the officer received an initial alert about the approach of “a low-flying, low-speed aerial target”. The nature of the helicopter was later clarified in follow-up reports, which Pashkov ignored. “Two minutes after the initial message, a missile fired by the Tor-M2DT anti-aircraft missile system destroyed the target”. He thought he was dealing with a drone...

The captain was sentenced to three years' imprisonment for negligence, and must also pay 50,000 euros to the Russian ministry for damages and 10,000 euros to the widows of the victims. 

On the Russian side, friendly fire isn't uncommon. Recently, on January 1 to be precise, the Russian Telegram channels Fighterbomber and Russian Aviation reported that a Mi-8 helicopter had been destroyed. According to Defence24, “the aircraft fell victim to its own anti-aircraft defense”. On January 10, several Telegram channels also reported that a North Korean-made surface-to-air missile (SAM) system in service in Russia had been shot down by a Russian drone.

(MH with Manon Pierre - Source: L'Indépendant - Illustration: Unsplash)