Shocking moment Turkish attack helicopter is shot out of the sky by Kurdish militant carrying a surface-to-air missile

HORRIFYING video footage has emerged of a Kurdish militant shooting down a Turkish helicopter with a surface-to-air missile.

Video footage shows an AH-1W Super Cobra helicopter drifting over the Turkish mountains.

But, hiding in a thicket of trees, a Kurdish militant is poised ready to fell the aircraft.

Wearing khaki clothes and a headband, the fighter points the surface-to-air missile into the sky.

The kickback from the missile knocks the man off balance, but the weapon still soars to hit its target.

In a sweeping arc, the missile curves into the sky and hits the attack helicopter.

At the moment of impact, a bright flame blossoms out of the helicopter.

The aircraft then starts to spiral out of control as the rotors get stripped off the craft.

In freefall, the helicopter explodes into pieces, scattering debris across the mountain range.

The devastating footage is just the latest aggression in the conflict between Turkey and the country’s Kurdish minority.

War broke out between the Eurasian country and the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) in July 2015.

The left-wing militants advocate for Kurdish political rights.

They want national autonomy from Turkey.

The PKK mainly holds territory towards the south-east of the country.

The shocking video was released on Saturday by Gerilla TV, which has links to the PKK.

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