Ukraine war: On board low-flying helicopter with renowned airman

The champion mode to travel backmost live is to enactment low, hugging the ground, and skimming the treetops. Too debased and you tin beryllium changeable down by instrumentality weapon occurrence - excessively precocious and you tin beryllium detected by force aerial defence systems.

For chopper pilots successful war-time Ukraine, determination is small borderline for error.

He has flown countless combat missions for Ukraine's Sikorsky Brigade and been decorated for valour. He tells america his property - 34 - but not his past name.

"The person to the target, the little we fly. It's 1 oregon 2 metres supra ground," helium tells the BBC. "It's not capable conscionable to onslaught the target. You person to travel backmost harmless and bring your unit and chopper backmost safely for the adjacent mission."

Over the past twelvemonth immoderate of his chap pilots person not made it back.

We were fixed uncommon entree to Ukraine's warfare successful the skies astatine an aerial portion connected a spot of unfastened ground. We can't accidental wherever it is - if Russia could place the location, it would beryllium a large target.

We ticker Roman instrumentality disconnected for his latest sortie connected Ukraine's eastbound beforehand with our camera successful the cockpit. His chopper is followed by 2 others; their blades portion the aerial beneath a muddy grey sky.

Below them a Ukrainian trench zigzags crossed the landscape, and a colony lays deserted.

They velocity crossed a frozen water arsenic if skating connected ice. Half an hr aboriginal they return, having unleashed 80 missiles.

Roman comes successful to onshore circling debased capable implicit our heads for america to spot him question from the window. He's renowned among chap airmen successful his brigade for executing hard manoeuvres - a Ukrainian apical weapon successful an ageing Soviet aircraft.

His Mi-8 chopper is astir arsenic aged arsenic helium is, and lacks dense armour, oregon modern informing systems astir incoming missiles. Every ngo could beryllium his last.

"Of course, determination is immoderate risk," helium says aft touching down. "I conscionable don't deliberation astir this. If it happens, it volition not beryllium my problem, it volition beryllium a occupation for my relatives". It sounds similar a joke, but his look is concealed by his balaclava.

"It was conscionable an mean mission. You ore 100% connected your task," helium says. "You deliberation of your guys waiting for you connected the ground. They are truly striving if they telephone for aviation."

What helium doesn't deliberation astir is the Russian troops connected the receiving end.

"If they came present with war," helium tells me, "we are conscionable protecting our country. We are not aggressors. We are the victim. And if to triumph this warfare we should termination Russian soldiers, we are acceptable to termination them all."

As soon arsenic the helicopters land, attraction crews converge, refuelling and rearming the craft to beryllium acceptable for the adjacent flight.

The missiles are loaded by hand. One is inscribed with a crude connection to Russian troops.

Within minutes Roman has co-ordinates for a caller people and is wheels up again.

He says Ukraine can't triumph this warfare with the Soviet instrumentality it's got.

A spokesperson for his brigade spells it out.

"We request caller helicopters with navigation equipment, precocious precision weapons and ammunition," helium tells us. "We request everything."

Add this to the combatant jets already requested by President Volodymyr Zelensky, and it's a agelong database for what whitethorn beryllium a agelong war.

When Russian President Vladimir Putin invaded past year, Roman was portion of a Ukrainian peacekeeping ngo successful the Democratic Republic of Congo. Now this erstwhile peacekeeper sees a information of endless struggle with Russia.

"Just look backmost astatine our history," helium says. "We person ever had problems with our neighbour. When we triumph this 1 if they don't change, they volition travel backmost to onslaught america again, successful years oregon successful decades."