Special envoy to a base of the Ukrainian Air Force in the Donbass
On the tarmac of this air base in eastern Ukraine, whose exact location must remain secret, three Mi-8 helicopters rise in the air.
Direction: Bakhmout, this industrial city that has become the epicenter of the fighting since last summer.
Mission: Destroy ammunition stocks and enemy armored vehicles.
In the orange sky of the dawning morning, in the distance, contrails draw the passages of Russian fighter planes above the front line.
"Let's pray that our guys come back alive,"
says Captain Vitaly, 26, who has just greeted the three crews and is about to await their return in the freezing cold.
These Ukrainian pilots carry out up to three missions a day on board Mi-8 and Mi-24, dating from the Soviet era and which are not all equipped with armored protection.
“They often have to be repaired”
, slips the young officer, who does not want more…
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