Downed Helicopters: Russia's Afghan Battle Wounds

During the Soviet-Afghan War, which lasted from 1979 to 1989, at least 333 Russian helicopters were shot down. The war was a major conflict of the Cold War, pitting the Soviet Union and its allies against the Afghan mujahideen and their foreign supporters. The mujahideen were backed by various countries, including the United States, Pakistan, China, Iran, and the United Kingdom.

The Soviet Union's aerial power was a significant aspect of its military strategy in Afghanistan. They used their helicopters and aircraft to deal harshly with both Afghan resistance fighters and civilians, levelling villages and employing other scorched-earth tactics. Despite their air superiority, the Soviet Union faced fierce resistance from the mujahideen, who waged guerrilla warfare in the rugged, mountainous terrain.

The Soviet-Afghan War resulted in significant losses for both sides. The war caused the deaths of approximately 3,000,000 Afghans and led to millions more fleeing the country as refugees. The Soviet Union also suffered casualties and faced operational difficulties due to the challenging terrain. The conflict ultimately contributed to the dissolution of the Soviet Union and the end of the Cold War.

The Soviet-Afghan War (1979-1989)

The Soviet-Afghan War lasted from 1979 to 1989 and was a conflict between Soviet forces and the Mujahideen, a group of Islamic insurgents. The war was sparked by the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in December 1979, which aimed to prop up the country's communist government that was facing opposition from anti-communist Muslim guerrillas. The Soviets wished to expand their influence in Asia, preserve the Communist government, and protect their interests in Afghanistan from Iran and Western nations.

The Soviet forces consisted of over 100,000 soldiers and quickly secured the capital, Kabul, installing Babrak Karmal as their puppet leader. However, they faced fierce resistance from the Mujahideen, who enjoyed the support of the local population and powerful foreign allies such as the United States. The Mujahideen employed guerrilla tactics, attacking and raiding quickly before disappearing into the mountains. They were decentralised and scattered throughout Afghanistan, making it difficult for the Soviets to defeat them.

The Soviet invasion had devastating effects on the Afghan people, with Soviet bombing destroying villages, crops, and irrigation systems. It is estimated that millions of Afghans died from starvation or Soviet bombings, and many more became refugees, fleeing to neighbouring countries or becoming internally displaced. The war also had significant consequences for the Soviet Union, with 15,000 Soviet soldiers killed and billions of dollars spent each year to support the troops. The failure of the invasion contributed to the fall of the Soviet Union in the early 1990s.

The war settled into a stalemate, with Soviet troops controlling the cities and major garrisons while the Mujahideen operated with relative freedom in the countryside. The Mujahideen were eventually able to neutralise Soviet air power through the use of US-provided shoulder-fired anti-aircraft missiles. The Soviets attempted to build up the Afghan government forces but ultimately decided to withdraw, with the last Soviet troops leaving Afghanistan in February 1989. The war had prolonged the civil conflict in Afghanistan, which continues to this day.

The US provided the Afghan military with Russian-made Mi-17 helicopters

The Mi-17 is a Soviet-designed Russian military helicopter introduced in 1975 and is known as the Mi-8M series in Russian service. It is mostly used as a medium twin-turbine transport helicopter but also has an armed gunship version. The export version of the Mi-17 is called the Mil Mi-17, and it is the most widely operated helicopter in history.

In 2011, the US Department of Defense inked several contracts worth hundreds of millions of dollars to buy roughly 73 Mi-17s for the Afghans from 2011 through 2013. The decision to buy from Russia was controversial because of the widespread corruption in Russia's defense industry and because Russia had supplied weapons to repressive governments in Syria and Iran.

The US had initially turned to third parties to acquire Mi-17s but later dealt directly with Rosoboronexport, Russia's state arms exporter. The total amount the Pentagon paid for the helicopters reached almost $1 billion. The US also provided training to Afghan pilots on flying the Mi-17s.

However, in 2014, the contract was suspended due to the Russian-Ukrainian war, and helicopter maintenance shifted to Ukraine. Following the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan in 2021, the US confiscated the Mi-17s as its property and transferred them to Ukraine to aid in its defense against Russia.

The Taliban captured more than 100 Russian-made helicopters

The Taliban captured more than 100 Russian-made Mi-17 helicopters in various states of operability, according to the head of a Russian state arms exporter. Alexander Mikheev, the head of the Russian state exporter Rosoboronexporter, said that the Taliban had captured more than 100 Mi-17 Hip helicopters, a Russian-made transport aircraft procured by the US for the Afghan armed forces.

The Mi-17 is the export version of Russia's Mi-8 helicopter, which is manufactured at two plants in Kazan and Ulan-Ude in Russia. The US had been procuring Mi-17 helicopters since 2005, buying at least 50 from the Russian state exporter before plans to buy an additional 30 helicopters ran into opposition in Congress in 2013.

While the Taliban had captured more than 100 Russian-made helicopters, they were largely unable to use them due to a lack of access to maintenance crews and spare parts. A large portion of the fleet could already be grounded, according to Mikheev.

The US special inspector general for Afghanistan reconstruction (Sigar) reported that the Afghan military had 56 Mi-17 helicopters, of which just 32 were usable and in the country. However, how many of those helicopters are now in flying condition is unclear, as the US drawdown of its armed forces and the Taliban onslaught have taken their toll on the Afghan air force’s readiness.

Videos had surfaced of Taliban fighters flying in an Mi-17, but there were no signs that the Taliban were deploying the helicopters in combat operations. The US had shifted to providing Black Hawks to Afghanistan in recent years, but far fewer Afghan crews had been trained to maintain the aircraft.

The Soviet Union supported the local pro-Soviet government

The Soviet Union's invasion of Afghanistan was met with widespread international condemnation. The United States, in particular, imposed economic sanctions and trade embargoes on the Soviet Union. It also boycotted the 1980 Moscow Olympics and began supplying the Mujahideen with non-lethal aid.

The Soviet Union's occupation of Afghanistan was marked by brutal tactics, including the levelling of villages, mass arrests, torture, and executions. The Soviet Union also imposed land reforms that troubled tribal leaders and economic measures that worsened conditions for the poor. These actions led to resistance from the Mujahideen, who were backed by the United States.

The Soviet Union's occupation of Afghanistan lasted until 1989, when Soviet Premier Mikhail Gorbachev withdrew Soviet forces. The Soviet Union's occupation resulted in the deaths of approximately one million civilians, 90,000 Mujahideen fighters, 18,000 Afghan troops, and 14,500 Soviet soldiers.

The Soviet Union used aerial power to deal with Afghan resistance and civilians

The Soviet-Afghan War was a major conflict of the Cold War, fought between the Soviet Union and the Afghan mujahideen. The war began in 1979 when the Soviets, under Leonid Brezhnev, invaded Afghanistan to support the local pro-Soviet government. The Soviets used their aerial power to deal with both Afghan resistance and civilians, levelling villages, destroying irrigation ditches and employing other scorched-earth tactics.

The Soviet government had initially planned to swiftly secure Afghanistan's towns and road networks, stabilise the People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan (PDPA) government, and withdraw all military forces within six months to a year. However, they were met with fierce resistance from Afghan guerrillas and experienced operational difficulties in the rugged mountainous terrain. By the mid-1980s, the Soviet military presence in Afghanistan had increased to approximately 115,000 troops, and fighting across the country intensified.

The Soviets used large-scale offensives against Mujahideen strongholds, such as in the Panjshir Valley, which temporarily cleared those sectors and killed many civilians in addition to enemy combatants. The Soviets also bombed villages that were near sites of guerrilla attacks on Soviet convoys or known to support resistance groups. Local peoples were forced to flee their homes, or else face death at the hands of daily Soviet attacks.

The Soviets did not foresee taking on such an active role in fighting the rebels and attempted to play down their role. However, the arrival of the Soviets had the opposite effect, incensing the Mujahideen and causing their numbers to grow. The Soviets followed three main strategies aimed at quelling the uprising: intimidation, subversion, and military forays into contested territories.

The Soviet occupation provoked a great deal of fear and unrest amongst a wide spectrum of the Afghan populace. In the first week of January 1980, attacks against Soviet soldiers in Kabul became common, with roaming soldiers often assassinated in broad daylight by civilians. The Soviet occupation exacerbated nationalistic sentiment, causing the rebellion to spread further.

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