Russian pilot Maksim Kuzminov, whose Mi-8 helicopter was driven to Ukraine as part of Operation "Sinytsia", shared details of what happened at a press conference with representatives of the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine.
Kuzminov said that the flight was carried out on an official request, and the route had been agreed in advance. He took off from the airfield in Kursk towards Kharkiv region.
While crossing the border, the helicopter was shot at and Kuzminov was wounded in the leg by a small-arms weapon.
"I cannot say for sure who was firing, but I assume it was the Russian side. I was wounded in the leg with small-arms weapon. I flew 20 kilometers and landed. After landing, I had two crew members with me. We did not have weapons with us, no one resisted me. I calmed the guys (crew members - ed.) down, saying they were good people, everything was fine. But they started to get afraid and behave aggressively. They ran out of the helicopter, and their further fate is unknown to me," the Russian pilot said.
Andriy Yusov, a representative of the Defence Intelligence of Ukraine, emphasized that the operation "Synitsa" will have lasting consequences for Russia and the morale of Russian troops.
"And for the Russian security sector. Because as a result of this operation, we managed to obtain extremely important information about the enemy's aviation, about many other details that will help protect the sky and destroy the enemy," Yusov said.
The DIU representative emphasized that this operation is unique and has no analogues in Ukraine.
