Mujahedeen rebels aim US-made Stinger missiles near
Gardez, Afghanistan.
Afghan guerrillas own a downed Soviet Mi-8B helicopter gunship, near the Salang Highway, a vital supply route north from Kabul to the Soviet border. Picture released on January 12, 1981.
There are many claims about the impact of the Stinger
Missile given to the Mujahedin during the Soviet – Afghan War. Some of the lost
aircraft were shot down by the Redeye missile. Redeye was an earlier IR
missile.
AIRCRAFT SHOT DOWN
What is known is that during the war, the Soviets lost about
330 helicopters and around 120 jets during the entire war 1979 – 89.
Mil Mi-24’s SHOT DOWN
A total of 50 Hinds were lost during the entire war. While
many were shot down, the type of missile used was not always known. The Stinger
was delivered to the Mujahedin in September 1986. The first confirmed downing
of a Mi-24 by a Stinger was done by engineer Ghaffar, of Gulbuddin Hekmatyar’s
Hezb-i-Islami. He brought down the first Hind gunship with a Stinger on
September 25, 1986 near Jalalabad
Here are the losses of the Mi 24 during 1986–89.
1986
25 September 1986
– An Mi-24 assault helicopter was shot down.
19 October 1986 –
An Mi-24 attack helicopter was shot down.
29 November 1986 –
An Mi-24 assault helicopter was shot down.
29 November 1986 –
An Mi-24 assault helicopter was shot down.
1987
12 January 1987 –
An Mi-24 assault helicopter was shot down.
27 February 1987 –
An Mi-24 assault helicopter was shot down.
21 April 1987 – An
Mi-24 assault helicopter was shot down.
18 May 1987 – An
Mi-24 attack helicopter was shot down.
31 May 1987 – An
Mi-24 assault helicopter was shot down.
4 June 1987 – An
Mi-24 assault helicopter was shot down.
9 June 1987 – An
Mi-24 assault helicopter was shot down.
1 July 1987 – An
Mi-24 assault helicopter was shot down.
15 July 1987 – An
Mi-24 assault helicopter was shot down.
29 September 1987
– An Mi-24 assault helicopter was shot down.
30 October 1987 –
An Mi-24 attack helicopter was shot down.
1988
16 February 1988 –
An Mi-24 attack helicopter was shot down
26 February 1988 –
An Mi-24 attack helicopter was shot down
29 February 1988 –
An Mi-24 attack helicopter shot down
18 April 1988 – An
Mi-24 assault helicopter was shot down.
20 April 1988 – An
Mi-24 assault helicopter was shot down.
21 August 1988 –
An Mi-24 attack helicopter shot down
27 August 1988 –
An Mi-24 assault helicopter was shot down.
30 September 1988
– An Mi-24 attack helicopter was shot down
1989
2 February 1989 –
An Mi-24 assault helicopter was shot down.
ANALYSIS
If they cannot recover wreckage they mark it as “destroyed
by PZRK”, PZRK mean manpad SAM, which could be one of four – Soviet Strela,
China NH5, Egypt Eye Sakr or American Stinger.
I propose 12 certain kills by Stingers and around ten more
possible kills, so ~22 in total. Even if we assume all PZRK kill after 1986
made by Stinger it gives us 31 max.
What the above shows is that upon delivery of the Stinger
Missile to the Mujahedin there was an increase in the number of Mi-24’s shot
down. In the last four years of the war at least 25 of these gunships were
brought down. As you can see this represents half of the total number of Mi-24’s
brought down during the war and they were all shot down after the Stinger was
delivered to the Mujahedin.
There were a total of 269 Soviet Aircraft losses after
September 1986 when the Stinger Missile was first given to the Mujahedin. The
Mujahedin gunners claim they were able to score these 269 kills out of 340
engagements, a roughly 70% hit rate while using the Stinger. If this report is
accurate, then the Stinger was responsible for over half of the Soviet Aircraft
losses during the entire war.
FINAL THOUGHTS
The Soviets withdrew from Afghanistan in 1989 and after the
war, many of the Stingers found their way to other countries. The US had
attempted to buy back the Stingers but at least 600 remained unaccounted for.
References:
List of Soviet aircraft losses during
the Soviet–Afghan War – Wikipedia
Mil Mi-24 (Hind) Armed Assault Gunship
/ Attack Helicopter – Soviet Union
Afghanistan: Kabul Confirms New Effort To Buy Back
U.S.-Built Stinger Missiles
