Ukrainian Drone Destroys T-72 Tank and Other Russian Equipment

The Ukrainian Special Operations Forces (SSO) on Tuesday shared a video that it said shows one of its drones destroying a T-72 tank and other Russian equipment in the Donetsk region of Ukraine.

The video was posted on the SSO’s X (formerly Twitter) and Telegram accounts. An accompanying message said the Ukrainian military unit also took out 11 Russian soldiers during the strike.

The Donetsk region has been the site of intense fighting in recent days. The Institute of the Study of War (ISW) think tank reported on Sunday that Russian President Vladimir Putin’s forces have continued attacking the Donetsk town of Chasiv Yar. However, the Russian military has not recently made significant battlefield advances in the region.

“Heavy equipment and 11 enemy soldiers were destroyed in the Donetsk region,” the SSO’s caption to the video of the drone attack read.

In its Telegram post, the SSO wrote a first-person view (FPV) drone was used by the “Medoyid” tactical group of the 3rd regiment during the assault.

The mission also reportedly destroyed a 2S6 “Tunguska” anti-aircraft missile gun complex and an armored combat vehicle, in addition to taking out the 11 troops and the T-72 tank.

Newsweek could not independently verify the authenticity of the video, and the Russian Ministry of Defense was contacted via email on Tuesday night for comment.

The SSO footage cuts away after showing the drone zoom in on the T-72, but other explosions in the clip seemingly indicate the destruction of weapons.

In its reporting on the video, the Kyiv Post noted that “a new T-72 tank ranges from $3-4 million, depending on the configuration, while an older Soviet T-72 can cost as low as half a million dollars.”

The 2S6 “Tunguska” anti-aircraft missile gun is a “Russian anti-aircraft missile and gun system designed for the anti-aircraft defense of mechanized and tank units on the march and at all stages of combat,” according to the Kyiv Post.

Tuesday’s SSO post is only the most recent example of the military branch reportedly finding success against Putin’s forces using FPVs. Earlier this month, the SSO wrote that it had destroyed two Russian tanks with first-person view drones, which also occurred in the Donetsk region.

That attack reportedly took out a T-72 tank as well as a T-90 tank. According to the Kyiv Post, “the T-90 is a modern Russian main battle tank, with an export value of a T-90 going from about $2.5 to $4.3 million depending on the level of modernization.”