Dramatic video shows Ukrainian special forces fighting a Russian Su-30 from small boats at sea. Kiev’s forces say they scored a hit, forcing the jet to flee

• Ukraine said Monday it had recaptured strategically important offshore drilling platforms.

• The platforms had been occupied by Russia since 2015 and used in the war.

• Ukraine shared a video showing Ukrainian special forces fighting a Russian fighter jet on boats near the platforms.

Ukrainian special forces fought in three small boats against one Russian Su-30 fighter jetdamaged it and eventually forced it to flee, Ukrainian military intelligence HUR, said Monday in a news release accompanied by a video of the fight.

The dramatic footage showed Ukrainian soldiers crowded into the small boats, firing their service weapons into the sky as the enemy multi-role fighter repeatedly flew overhead and fired at them.

The Ukrainians eventually struck the Russian jet with an attack portable air defense systemor MANPADS, according to a translated version of the HUR video with English subtitles.

MANPADS are surface-to-air missiles that can be carried by a single operator and fired by either an individual or a crew. The USA and other countries have provided Ukraine with various things Short-range air defense so to counter the threat from Russian aircraft.

After sustaining damage, the fighter jet fled the battle, Ukrainian authority HUR said. In the video, the apparent hit prompted cheers from Ukrainian soldiers on the boats. A soldier in the video said he hit the Su-30 and it started smoking.

Ukraine’s military intelligence said the showdown with the Russian jet was part of an operation to recapture offshore oil and gas drilling platforms near Crimea.

Ukraine They said on Monday they had successfully retaken the platforms that Russia took control of in 2015 following its illegal annexation of Crimea in 2014. They said Russia had used the platforms for military operations since invading Ukraine in February 2022.

According to the information, Russian forces used the platforms as floating military bases on which they could land helicopters or station troops The New York Times.

“For Ukraine, regaining control of the Boiko towers was strategically important and Russia thereby lost the ability to use them for military purposes,” Ukrainian military intelligence said in a video, according to Telegram Reuters.

Russia did not immediately address Ukraine’s claim that it had recaptured the platforms. Insider was unable to independently verify the claim or the accompanying video.

The fight between the boats and the fighter jet was part of one 13 minute video published by Ukrainian military intelligence and revealed further aspects of the operation.

It is unclear exactly when the operation took place, but it may have been referenced in a British Defense Intelligence An update on August 27 said that “tensions in the Black Sea remain high” as there were “battles between naval and air forces” around the strategically important platforms.

British intelligence added that in the week before this update, a Russian fighter jet fired on a small Ukrainian military boat that was operating near a platform.

Read the original article Business Insider