Ukrainian FPV Drone Destroys Russian Ka-52 Helicopter Near Pokrovsk, Officials Say

The Baltyka team had already missed once. Video footage circulating online shows their fiber-optic FPV drone tracking two Russian helicopters simultaneously near the village of Nadiivka on the Pokrovsk front; the first evaded, the second did not. The Ka-52 "Alligator" struck the ground in a blast of fire and smoke on March 20, 2026, and Ukraine's Unmanned Systems Forces say a $16 million Russian attack helicopter was erased from the battlefield by what their own operators called "a small drone in the hands of an experienced pilot."

The strike was carried out by fighters from the "Predators of the Heights" battalion of the 59th Separate Assault Brigade, operating within Ukraine's Unmanned Systems Forces. The Baltyka crew, part of the Sky Predators unmanned systems battalion embedded in the 59th Brigade, flew the fiber-optic FPV drone that tracked and targeted the Ka-52 near Nadiivka in Donetsk Oblast's Pokrovsk direction.

After the helicopter was forced into an emergency landing, the Russian crew attempted to flee. According to Robert "Magyar" Brovdi, commander of the 414th "Birds of Magyar" Brigade, additional Ukrainian drones operated by fighters from that brigade's 1st Battalion intercepted the crew. Brovdi said they were later located and killed by his unit's operators. The Kyiv Independent noted it could not independently verify those claims at the time of publication.

The Sky Predators unit wasted little time announcing the outcome. On Telegram, the Predators of the Heights posted: "We have +1. Guess what we are talking about?" followed by a fuller statement: "Today, we shot down an enemy helicopter for the second time. This time a Ka-52. This is no longer an accident. This is the result of the coordinated work and skill of our guys."

The second helicopter in 18 months. On September 29, 2025, the same Sky Predators unit struck a Mil Mi-8 multipurpose helicopter. This Ka-52 strike marks the 59th Brigade's second confirmed rotary-wing kill, according to Ukraine's Unmanned Systems Forces.

The Ka-52 "Alligator" is a next-generation reconnaissance and attack helicopter, designed as a command aircraft for Russian army aviation, used to target armored vehicles, troops, and aerial threats. Ukraine's Unmanned Systems Forces put its replacement cost at approximately $16 million. According to the Ukrainian General Staff, the Nadiivka strike brought the total number of Russian helicopters shot down by Ukraine since the start of the full-scale invasion to 350.

The fiber-optic guidance system used by the Baltyka team is a critical tactical detail. Unlike radio-frequency FPV drones, fiber-optic variants transmit control signals through a physical tether, making them effectively immune to electronic jamming, which Russia has deployed extensively to counter Ukraine's drone campaign. Footage of the strike, released by the Unmanned Systems Forces, shows the drone's terminal approach and the explosion on impact. Kyiv Post, which published the footage, warned that it contains sensitive content and noted it could not independently verify the time and location of the recording.