Ukrainian troops for the first time used the British man-portable air-defense system Starstreak, shooting down a Russian helicopter Мі-28Н in the Luhansk region, The Times has reported.
Information from the Telegram channel Bochkala_#The WAR! Now
About the shot down МІ-28Н.
Pilots, unfortunately, survived. Everything was happening in the East of Ukraine. Pro-Kremlin comment of the local citizen.
The attack footage shows tungsten "arrows' of Starstreak breaking the tail of Мі-28Н after Ukrainians opened fire using British equipment.
Information from the Telegram channel Bochkala_#The WAR! Now
SHOT DOWN МІ-28 of the Russian Aerospace Forces
Earlier, the Armed Forces of Ukraine received British missile systems about a week ago.
Starstreak is designed to defeat low altitude helicopters and enemy aircraft. Starstreak is considered the world's fastest low-range land-to-air missile, its missiles flying at a speed of 3 Mach, which is three times the speed of sound.
Starstreak MPADS uses innovative technology - after its launching and acceleration the missile, it is divided into three separate "arrows' that are aimed at the principle of the "laser path" (semi-automatic command guidance on the laser beam). Each "arrow," whose main part consists of a heavy tungsten alloy, contains a charge of explosives that causes as much damage to the target as a 40 mm anti-aircraft shell.
Starstreak MPADSs can hit air targets at altitudes up to 7 kilometers. The probability of successful target defeat is about 90%.
So far they have not had real combat use. According to the BBC, British troops took them to the war in Iraq in 2003, but they didn’t launch these complexes against the defeated Iraqi aviation.