The “Alligator” snaps at German Leopard tanks Search already stopped: American adventurers rescued after two weeks on the open sea

Ukrainian attempts to advance on the southern front are hampered by at least one type of Russian weapon: heavily armored attack helicopters. British military intelligence reports in its latest situation assessment that 20 helicopters have been moved to the Russian-controlled airport of Berdyansk – about 100 kilometers from the front lines. That’s what aerial photos showed.

“In the ongoing competition between airstrikes and countermeasures, it is likely that Russia has gained a temporary advantage in southern Ukraine, particularly through helicopter gunships using longer-range missiles against ground targets,” the intelligence agency said. Ukrainian deputy defense minister Hanna Maliar also spoke of “air superiority of Russian troops” in the south.

According to the online magazine The War Zone, Russian military bloggers are increasingly reporting on the success of attack helicopters. Officially unconfirmed reports speak of dozens of Ukrainian vehicles destroyed from the air. Several tanks were said to have been destroyed by the flying combat machines near Zaporizhia, including German Leopard and American Bradley tanks.

Ka-52 attack helicopters from the Russian manufacturer Kamov pop up again and again in online videos purporting to come from the war zone. These aircraft are available in two versions, one as a single seater and one as the two-seat “Alligator” variant. The machines were developed in the early 1980s and have been continuously improved ever since.

Particularly striking is the coaxial rotor: two main rotors one above the other, making a tail rotor superfluous. The machines can travel up to 300 kilometers per hour and can be deployed within a radius of 460 kilometers, as the military specialist site Militaryfactory describes the properties.

The helicopters are equipped with an on-board gun, but can also fire different types of missiles. According to “The War Zone”, anti-tank missiles of the type 9M120-1 Ataka-1 and 9A4172K Vikhr-1 are mainly used. They are laser-guided and can fly up to ten kilometers. According to Guy Plopsky, author of many articles on the Russian Air Force, the Ka-52 helicopters have a range advantage over other Russian models.

The fact that these are now deployed at the front in southern Ukraine may also have to do with the fact that there is apparently less Ukrainian air defense here. The advancing units are then less protected and form an easy target for the fast combat ships. The “alligators” are also said to have snapped at the German leopards near Zaporizhia.

“Currently, many of the targets being attacked by the Ka-52 appear to be vehicles that are close to or ahead of Ukrainian lines,” Plopsky told War Zone. away. “In such cases, the Ukrainians have no short-range air defense in between.”

However, according to Plopsky, the Ka-52 has a sore spot: when Vikhr missiles are launched, the helicopter has to be in the air for almost half a minute to mark the target with the laser in front of the missile. In this position, it could be more easily hit by radar-based anti-aircraft missiles.

According to the authors of the “War Zone” article, the helicopter strikes will increase pressure on Ukraine to deploy more short-range air defense systems. However, according to Ukrainian information, the defense against the Ka-52 attack helicopters has also been successful. The Ukrainian Air Force reported on Friday that they shot down one of these helicopters in Donetsk.

Used sources:

(t-online, when)