 Russian helicopters 12 planes destroyed on ground. When President Volodymyr Zelensky spoke about 26 downed Russian helicopters and 12 planes, he was referring to their destruction on the ground, spokesperson for the Ukrainian Air Force Yuri Inat stated. Earlier Zelensky said that thanks to Western weapons Ukraine downed 26 helicopters in a day. Everyone knows perfectly well what was meant, said Inat, not downed, but destroyed. I think it's about things that everyone discussed a long time ago and somewhat forgot. It's the destruction of enemy aircraft. Russian helicopters and planes directly at the airfield bases. Retta has lost a total of 329 planes and 324 helicopters since February 24, 2022, according to the general staff. Over the course of the full-scale war, Ukraine has reported numerous successful strikes that managed to destroy Russian aircraft on the ground. In particular, on the night of October 17, 2023, Ukrainian armed forces struck at Russian airfields near occupied Byrdiansk, Zaporizia Oblast and in Luhansk, destroying at least 9 helicopters and numerous other objects, including enemy air defense. This represented the largest single loss of helicopters and one of the biggest losses for Russian aviation since the invasion of Ukraine. After the successful attack, Zelensky announced that agreements with US President Joe Biden were being implemented and that long-range ATACMS missiles had proved themselves.