A Ukrainian airborne team has been using what appears to be a Polish plane based on a Soviet-era design to hunt and shoot down Russian drones, according to media reports.
A video report from French broadcaster TF1 published on Wednesday showed a reporter join a Ukrainian volunteer drone-hunting unit that uses an “old military plane dating from the Soviet era” as part of Ukraine’s defense against Russia.
The footage shows the repurposed cargo plane, fitted with guns on its side, approach Shahed-style kamikaze drones apparently en route to potential targets before its gunners shoot down the objects.
The crew in the footage has downed close to 150 such drones, TF1 reported, citing one pilot as saying: “We’re moving from drone hunting to real aerial combat with these drones because they’re evolving so fast.”
While the outlet describes the repurposed cargo plane as “an old Soviet aircraft”, Polish news site Forsal reported on Thursday that it may have been produced in Poland.
The plane in the video appears to be either a Soviet AN-28 or its Polish variant, the PZL M28 utility aircraft.
Poland began manufacturing its own versions of the aircraft from the 1980s, with the Polish-made planes eventually receiving the designation “Skytruck.”
The extensive use of drones in the war in Ukraine, which began with Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022, has led to both sides using repurposed aircraft to counter unmanned aerial vehicles.