The GUR confirmed the death of a Russian pilot who fled to Ukraine by helicopter

The representative of the Main Intelligence Directorate of Ukraine, Andrey Yusov, confirmed reports of the death of Russian pilot Maksym Kuzmynov, who fled to Ukraine in the summer of 2023 on a Mi-8 military helicopter and handed him over to the Ukrainian Armed Forces. Kuzminov’s body was found in Spain.

“We can confirm the fact of death,” Yusov told RBC-Ukraine, but did not specify the cause of the pilot’s death.

According to the ABC newspaper, on February 13, the body of a 33-year-old citizen of Ukraine with several bullet wounds was found in the town of La Villajoyosa in Alicante. Russian state media said that it was about the Russian pilot Maksym Kuzminov. At the same time, he was 28 years old. According to The Insider, the original source of the news about the death of Kuzminov was the Eureka News Telegram channel, which is the channel of the former employee of the Ministry of Defense of Russia Mikhail Zvinchuk, the author of the “Fisherman” channel.

Spanish law enforcement agencies have not yet publicly confirmed the identity of the deceased.

• In August 2023, a Russian Mi-8 helicopter flew from Russia to Ukraine and landed at one of the Ukrainian airfields. Later, the head of the GUR Kirill Budanov said that the agency convinced the Russian pilot Miksym Kuzminov to fly to Ukraine and hand over the helicopter. Two crew members, who did not know what was happening, were killed when they tried to hide. According to Budanov, all relatives of Kuzminov were helped to leave Russia before the operation.