Russian Defence Ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov told a news briefing on Monday that the Russian armed forces had destroyed three Ukrainian combat helicopters in a strike that targeted an airfield outside the city of Nikolayev.
The helicopters were obliterated as part of Russia's ongoing special military operation in Ukraine.
Konashenkov also said that Russian air defence systems shot down six Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) in the air over Nikolayev as well as the city of Kherson and the settlements of Kurakhovka, Industrialnoye, and Velikaya Novosyolka.
He added that since the beginning of the special operation, the Russian military has destroyed a total of 125 aircraft, 91 helicopters, 392 UAVs, and 226 anti-aircraft missile systems of the Ukrainian armed forces.
Additionally, 1,936 tanks and other armoured combat vehicles, 211 multiple rocket launchers, 833 field artillery guns and mortars, as well as 1,810 special military vehicles of the Ukrainian Army have been destroyed, according to Konashenkov.
The Russian special military operation to demilitarise and de-Nazify Ukraine, was announced by President Vladimir Putin on 24 February, following a request for help from the Donetsk and Lugansk People's Republics, which witnessed weeks of intensifying shelling by the Ukrainian Army. According to the Russian Defence Ministry, the operation only aims to destroy Ukraine's military infrastructure with high-precision weapons.
Let's stay in touch no matter what! Follow our Telegram channel to get all the latest news: https://t.me/sputniknewsus