A Military Correspondent Explained Why Russia Is Shooting Down Its Own Aircraft
- 15.11.2026, 12:45
Their own helicopters have become more "prime" targets than Ukrainian drones.
Russian military aircraft are regularly hit by friendly fire from their own air defense systems because planes and helicopters are more “vulnerable” targets than drones.
This was reported by the well-known Russian Z-correspondent Svyatoslav Golikov, as reported by Dialog.UA.
On the night of November 11, two helicopters and a MiG-31 were shot down in St. Petersburg, Russia.
This occurred while repelling a raid by Ukrainian drones on the port of Ust-Luga. While Russian authorities and official media remained silent, pro-Russian media outlets openly stated that the Russian Air Force had never before paid such a high price “to defend the skies” in a single night.
According to the latest reports, at least seven Russian military pilots were killed. There has been no official confirmation of this information from the Russian Ministry of Defense to date. According to Golikov, such incidents occur regularly.
First, there is a lack of coordination among military forces during air defense operations. Second, Russia’s air defense system—which is not the best—is incapable of locking onto targets as small as UAVs.
“We’re losing helicopters again… The target has a more distinct thermal signature for MANPADS. And when MANPADS are in the hands of MOGs (mobile fire groups—ed.), there’s a lack of coordination in such situations, and an attack occurs. And then a drone appears in the sector—it doesn’t pick up that little thing, so it goes after the helicopter,” the Z-blogger explained.
Israeli military journalist Sergey Ausländer noted that it is cheaper for Russia not to shoot down Ukrainian UAVs. “If you lose three aircraft every time you repel an incursion, and the incursion is still successful, then there’s no point in repelling it—it ends up being more expensive. I’m referring to the incident in Ust-Luga, where Russian air defense managed to shoot down two of its own helicopters and an airplane. True, the Z-bloggers tried to explain the whole thing as a ‘collision between aircraft,’ which, of course, completely changes the story. “But among the aircraft was a MiG-31—what was it even doing there, and how did it manage to collide with the helicopters? The propaganda is keeping that under wraps,” he noted.
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