Head of the Main Directorate of Intelligence of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine Kirill Budanov gave details of the shooting down of two Russian Su-30s in the Black Sea by the Ukrainian military. He called this event a "historic moment."
Budanov said this in an interview with The War Zone.
According to the head of Ukrainian intelligence, the soldiers shot down two Su-30 Flanker multi-role fighters using AIM-9 Sidewinder infrared-guided air-to-air missiles.
"This is the first time that fighters have been shot down by drones, and the first use of AIM-9 from a drone to destroy an enemy. This is a historic moment," Budanov commented.
The shootdown occurred in the Black Sea on May 2. The MDI used three Magura V7 unmanned boats in the attack, two of which fired at the aircraft.
"The Magura V7 is a variant of the Magura V5 for air defense," Budanov explained, without going into details about the difference between them.
The head of the GUR added that the crew of the first Su-30 survived and was picked up in the Black Sea by a civilian vessel. Previously, the crew of the second aircraft died.
As a reminder, a Ukrainian naval drone was the first in the world to destroy a Su-30 combat aircraft . The fighter was hit by soldiers of the Main Intelligence Directorate in cooperation with the SBU and the Defense Forces of Ukraine.