Russian Mi-8 Runs Out of Fuel Mid-Flight, Crashes While Trying to Land on Highway

A Russian Aerospace Forces Mi-8 helicopter crashed while attempting an emergency landing on a highway on Sakhalin Island after both of its engines reportedly shut down due to fuel exhaustion.

According to Defense Blog on September 2, the helicopter came down roughly 5 kilometers (3 miles) from its destination airfield before leaving the roadway and overturning in a roadside ditch.

Video footage from the scene shows the Mi-8 descending directly toward the highway, with its rotor blades passing above a truck traveling along the road. Images taken after the incident show the helicopter lying on its side in vegetation beside the highway. The number 72 is visible on its fuselage.

The pro-Russian military aviation channel Fighterbomber, cited by Defense Blog, reported that both engines lost power after the helicopter ran out of fuel.

According to the channel, the crew redirected the aircraft away from the highway during the emergency descent to avoid vehicles on the road. Russian authorities are investigating how the helicopter exhausted its fuel supply.

“There are many possibilities,” Fighterbomber said regarding the circumstances that led to the incident.

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The helicopter’s unit and full identification have not been disclosed, while information about possible injuries among the crew was not immediately available. Russia’s Defense Ministry had not publicly commented on the incident at the time of Defense Blog’s report.

The crash comes amid broader pressure on Russia’s aviation fuel supplies following Ukrainian strikes against the country’s oil refining infrastructure.

Ukraine’s Defense Intelligence (HUR) said on August 29 that Russia had imported at least 70,000 tonnes of Jet A-1 aviation fuel from South Korea and Egypt after attacks on Russian refineries reduced domestic aviation kerosene production.

Russia has also temporarily restricted exports of domestically produced aviation fuel through the end of November, according to AeroTime.

Russian military helicopters have also suffered losses from friendly fire. In July, a Russian Ka-52 attack helicopter crashed in the Voronezh region after it was reportedly struck by a Verba MANPADS operated by a Russian mobile air defense group responding to a Ukrainian drone attack.

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