A Mi-17 helicopter operated by Myanmar’s military was hit on May 21 during a resupply mission near Bhamo, where intense fighting continues between junta forces and separatist groups.
The attack, carried out using a fiber-optic FPV drone armed with a high-explosive warhead.
According to local sources, the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) conducted the ambush while government troops attempted to deliver supplies to the besieged 21st Military Operations Command, which has been cut off from ground access. The only remaining supply route is by air, making helicopters a key target in the ongoing clashes.
The incident occurred on May 21, when two helicopters were reportedly engaged in a logistics operation over contested territory. One Mi-17 was struck and crashed later into nearby forested terrain. The second aircraft was forced to make an emergency landing near the outskirts of Bhamo. There are no confirmed reports of casualties from the second helicopter.
The strike mirrors an earlier Ukrainian achievement—widely regarded as a world first—when an FPV drone was used to shoot down a helicopter in flight.
The KIA, one of the more capable armed resistance groups in northern Myanmar, has increasingly relied on unconventional strategies and precision weapons in its fight against junta forces. The use of guided FPV drones—controlled in real time and capable of delivering accurate, destructive payloads—has introduced new vulnerabilities for aircraft operating in low-altitude combat zones.
The Myanmar military has not issued an official response. However, visual evidence and on-ground accounts confirm the destruction of one aircraft and the forced landing of another.
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