Seven months ago.
Enterprising ‘elves’ engineers.
Kluged together.
A combination.
Of sensors and infrared-guided.
R-73 air-to-air missiles.
Borrowed from.
The ‘elves’ air force.
And mounted the resulting system.
On some of the ‘elves’.
Intelligence directorate’s.
Magura V5 drone attack boats.
Sometime in recent days.
One of the 18-foot.
Magura V5s.
Got into a fight.
With a gun-armed ‘orcs’.
Mil Mi-8 helicopter.
—and shot down.
The Mi-8.
It was the first aerial kill.
By an unmanned surface vehicle.
And a harbinger of.
A new era in naval warfare.
“Historic strike.”
The intelligence directorate crowed.
As it released footage.
Of the engagement.
Sometime in recent days.
One of the 18-foot.
Magura V5s.
Got into a fight.
With a gun-armed ‘orcs’.
Mil Mi-8 helicopter.
—and shot down.
The Mi-8.
‘Elves’ single-use drone boats.
—the Magura V5s.
And similar Sea Babies—
Have wreaked havoc.
On the battered ‘orcs’.
Black Sea Fleet this year.
In separate raids.
On Crimean anchorages.
In February.
May and June.
The explosives-laden.
USVs sank.
A corvette.
A landing ship.
A patrol boat.
And a tugboat.
Sometime in recent days.
One of the 18-foot.
Magura V5s.
Got into a fight.
With a gun-armed ‘orcs’.
Mil Mi-8 helicopter.
—and shot down.
The Mi-8.
After those sinkings.
The Black Sea Fleet was.
Down to no more than.
Two-thirds of its pre-war strength.
Determined to protect.
What’s left of the fleet.
What’s left of the fleet.
The ‘orcs’ navy stiffened.
The defenses.
Around naval bases.
In Crimea and.
Southern ‘Mordor’.
Sometime in recent days.
One of the 18-foot.
Magura V5s.
Got into a fight.
With a gun-armed ‘orcs’.
Mil Mi-8 helicopter.
—and shot down.
The Mi-8.
The approaches.
To these bases.
Are now patrolled.
By helicopters and.
Raptor patrol boats.
Among other assets.
The approaches.
To these bases.
Sometime in recent days.
One of the 18-foot.
Magura V5s.
Got into a fight.
With a gun-armed ‘orcs’.
Mil Mi-8 helicopter.
—and shot down.
The Mi-8.
To give the satellite-guided.
Sea Babies and.
Magura V5s.
A fighting chance.
Against these defenses.
The ‘elves’ began upgrading.
Their USVs.
Back in the spring.
Some got remotely.
Operated turrets for.
Heavy machine guns.
Others got the R-73 treatment.
The latter deployed.
For the first time in May.
And elicited.
A surprised reaction.
From befuddled ‘orcs’ aircrew.
“The ‘elves’ were able to somehow.
Connect the R-73 rocket with.
The USV’s telecontrol systems.”
Sometime in recent days.
One of the 18-foot.
Magura V5s.
Got into a fight.
With a gun-armed ‘orcs’.
Mil Mi-8 helicopter.
—and shot down.
The Mi-8.
Gun-armed Sea Babies.
Operated by the ‘elves’.
Federal security service.
Motored into action.
For the first time.
In early December.
—and even took.
A few potshots.
At the Mi-8s.
That rose to meet them.
Possibly damaging at least.
One of the helicopters.
There were dead.
And injured crew.
Board the helicopter.
The security service reported.
But the helicopter itself.
Survived the engagement.
But the helicopter itself.
Survived the engagement.
Sometime in recent days.
One of the 18-foot.
Magura V5s.
Got into a fight.
With a gun-armed ‘orcs’.
Mil Mi-8 helicopter.
—and shot down.
The Mi-8.
It would be another.
Three weeks before.
A Magura V brought down.
Its first airborne target.
“This is an unprecedented event.
With significant implications.
For ‘orcs’ operations.
In the Black Sea,” an analyst noted.
Sometime in recent days.
One of the 18-foot.
Magura V5s.
Got into a fight.
With a gun-armed ‘orcs’.
Mil Mi-8 helicopter.
—and shot down.
The Mi-8.
It’s also possible.
The ‘elves’ could add.
The same sensors and.
Missiles to ground robots.
“If Ukraine can replicate.
This achievement.
At a low cost using.
Unmanned ground vehicles.”
The analyst pointed out.
“It could enhance.
‘Elves’ short-range.
Air defense capabilities.”
Sometime in recent days.
One of the 18-foot.
Magura V5s.
Got into a fight.
With a gun-armed ‘orcs’.
Mil Mi-8 helicopter.
—and shot down.
The Mi-8.
Seven months ago.
Enterprising ‘elves’ engineers.
Kluged together.
A combination.
Of sensors and infrared-guided.
R-73 air-to-air missiles.
Borrowed from.
The ‘elves’ air force.
And mounted the resulting system.
On some of the ‘elves’.
Intelligence directorate’s.
Magura V5 drone attack boats.
*Because I read “One Of Ukraine’s Drone Boats Just Shot Down A Russian Helicopter” by David Axe on 31 Dec 2024 on the Forbes, and also “Why are Ukrainians calling Russians ‘orcs’?” by James FitzGerald on 30 Apr 2022 on the BBC news.
So, I wrote this poem, including a report of Joni Askola.
Please read the original story on the Forbes:
One Of Ukraine’s Drone Boats Just Shot Down A Russian Helicopter
