Russian troops deploy 20 military helicopters to Berdiansk

Radio Liberty's Schemes project, which got satellite images from Planet Labs on June 13, reported the information.

As of June 13, there were at least 27 Russian army helicopters at the airfield, 20 of which appeared there recently, according to satellite images from May 31.

Two aviation experts involved by Schemes helped to identify the models of helicopters at the airfield:

• 5 Ka-52 helicopters;

• 9 Mi-8 or Mi-24 helicopters;

• 13 Ka-29 helicopters.

Photo: Radio Liberty

"Most of the helicopters are used to support the Russian ground forces and to strengthen the defense against the Ukrainian counteroffensive. Mi-8s can be used for evacuation, but they are also used for rapid deployment of troops or equipment closer to the battlefield," aviation expert Anatoliy Khrapchynskyi said in a comment to Schemes.

Military expert Mykhailo Zhyrokhov explained to journalists that Russian troops are probably using the Berdiansk airfield as an operational airfield for the deployment of army aviation units located in the occupied Crimea.

"This is extremely necessary for them, because in conditions of remote basing, effective support of the ground forces - "work on request" - is impossible," said Mykhailo Zhyrokhov.

The expert added that the helicopters deployed to Berdiansk can also be used for emergency evacuation of the wounded, transfer of troops and equipment.

On June 12, the Ukrainian Armed Forces destroyed a Russian Ka-52 attack helicopter, also known as the Alligator, making it the 300th helicopter lost by Russia in Ukraine.

The Defense Ministry reported that the Ukrainian Armed Forces were successful in their offensive in the Berdiansk sector and as of June 13 had taken control of up to 3 square kilometers, advancing from half a kilometer to a kilometer.

The advisor to the mayor of Mariupol, Petro Andriushchenko, said that on June 13, there was an increase in the movement of Russian troops through Mariupol from Berdiansk, and not vice versa.