The Ukrainian military announced that the Bayraktar TB2 aircraft lost control over the capital Kiev, forcing air defense forces to shoot it down.
"A Bayraktar TB2 unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) lost control during a planned flight over Kiev on the evening of May 4. We decided to deploy mobile air defense batteries to shoot it down in order to avoid unintended consequences in the capital. It is regrettable, but such an incident always has the potential to happen," the Ukrainian Air Force Command said in a statement.
The Ukrainian Air Force said the plane had technical problems and confirmed that the downing caused no casualties on the ground.
The Bayraktar TB2 was shot down by Ukrainian air defense in the sky over Kiev on the evening of May 4. Video : Twitter/UAWeapons
Video shared on social media shows the TB2 flying slowly at low altitude, while several gunshots are heard. An unknown anti-aircraft missile is then launched, hitting the plane and causing it to burst into flames and crash to the ground.
Western military experts said Ukraine's explanation was reasonable, but still questioned why the TB2 flew over Kiev's airspace in the context of the region having just suffered attacks by Russian suicide UAVs.
"Ukrainian air defense is on very high alert. The TB2 aircraft looks quite similar to some Russian UAVs, making it even more difficult to identify friend or foe. It is impossible to rule out the possibility that this was a friendly fire incident," expert Joseph Trevithick wrote on the US military website War Zone .
The Bayraktar TB2 is the main UAV line used by Ukraine to counter the Russian campaign. Each TB2 costs about 1-2 million USD, while the complete system with control station costs 5 million USD.
Ukrainian air defense missile attacks TB2 in Kiev sky on the evening of May 4. Photo: AFP
The TB2 aircraft is 6.5 m long, has a wingspan of 12 m, a maximum take-off weight of 650 kg, and can operate continuously for 27 hours at a distance of 300 km from the control station. Each aircraft can carry a payload of 150 kg, of which the weapon weight is 55 kg. The TB2 is equipped with MAM-L laser-guided missiles with 4 types of warheads with a maximum weight of 22 kg.
The Bayraktar TB2 showed its power in the early stages of the conflict in the suburbs of Kiev, but the Ukrainian Air Force had to limit its operations due to strong Russian air defenses. TB2s have virtually disappeared from combat and are only used for special attack missions.
Vu Anh (According to Drive )
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