Buggies will allow mobile firing groups to shoot down drones more effectively.
Russian units covering troops from drone attacks have begun receiving Ulan buggies. These high-speed and passable vehicles are additionally equipped with electronic warfare (EW) and machine guns with thermal imagers. The crews include machine gunners and fighters with man-portable air defense systems (MANPADS). The combination of mobile technology and weapons should increase the effectiveness of the fight against drones, experts say.
How to strengthen the anti-aircraft gunners of the Ulan buggy
Mobile firing groups covering troops from drone strikes have begun using Ulan buggies, sources familiar with the situation told Izvestia. The machines are being improved directly in the units — electronic warfare equipment and machine guns with thermal imagers are being installed.
The crews of the Ulans include machine gunners and fighters with portable anti-aircraft missile systems. This allows you to hit both small drones and larger aircraft-type vehicles.
Photo: IZVESTIA/Dmitry Astrakhan
Image source: iz.ru
The new vehicles demonstrate high efficiency in destroying drones of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, the interlocutors said.
Mobile firing groups began to form in various military units on the line of contact. Their task is to protect troops from air strikes in positions and on the march.
Ulans are created on the basis of Niva, which simplifies maintenance and the search for repair components — the engine and gearbox are used from a production car. The machine was modified to meet the requirements of the front: a power supply unit is installed on the instrument panel to connect equipment and electronic warfare equipment. The headlights are equipped with camouflage covers, fog lights are additionally installed.
The engine starts with a button, which allows the driver to get the car moving faster in an emergency. A folding seat is provided in the body for an observer shooter who monitors the air situation in the rear hemisphere.
—Mobile firing groups need transport that will quickly take them to positions where they will monitor the airspace and hit drones,— military expert Alexei Leonkov told Izvestia.
Photo: IZVESTIA/Dmitry Astrakhan
Image source: iz.ru
A buggy is a relatively small and relatively inconspicuous vehicle, he added. And the electronic warfare system should protect the calculation.
— There are situations when a group shoots down one drone, and then another appears and attacks the transport. It even happened when the operators of the mobile firing group died," the expert explained. — A machine gun with a thermal imager is the last line of defense of a mobile firing group. She is equipped with everything not only to perform a combat mission, but also to be protected.
Such tactics should be effective, Leonkov concluded.
The appearance of mobile firing groups on the Ulan buggy is a response to the new reality of combat, where the threat comes not only from aviation in the classical sense, but also from drones, said Igor Murog, a full member of the Academy of Military Sciences, retired Colonel, Senator of the Russian Federation.
"The strength of such tactics is a combination of high mobility, rapid deployment and multi—layered cover: machine guns with thermal imagers allow you to work on low—altitude targets day and night, and electronic warfare and MANPADS calculations form an additional protection contour," he explained.
According to the senator, in conditions where the bill often runs for minutes, and sometimes for seconds, it is the speed of changing positions and the ability to quickly close a vulnerable area that can have a noticeable effect, especially when escorting convoys, covering rear routes and responding promptly to raids.
Photo: RIA Novosti/Vitaly Timkiv
Image source: iz.ru
The effectiveness of such a platform will be determined by the quality of intelligence, communications, coordination with other air defense systems and competent inclusion in the overall system of countering drones, Murog added.
"In general, this is a justified approach," military expert Yuri Knutov told Izvestia. — Such units must act according to a single air defense plan and receive target designation on the movement of drones in order to meet them on the route in advance and hit them.
Buggies will provide mobile firing groups with high speed, the ability to overcome rough terrain, and when threatened by a drone attack, they can quickly leave the transport, the expert noted.
How are methods of combating drones developing in the military
Earlier, Izvestia reported on the creation of new units to combat aircraft-type drones. They include two groups — radar operators and drone crews. They are trained to work in conjunction with a high level of interaction. In the combat zone, radar operators deploy their stations and take control of the air situation. When an enemy drone is detected, they transmit the data to the control center. The command analyzes the information and gives the command to the operators of the air defense drones to destroy.
Photo: IZVESTIA/Dmitry Astrakhan
Image source: iz.ru
Modern radar stations and updated software make it possible to accurately determine the location of aerial objects and their key parameters in real time. This significantly increases the effectiveness of the use of unmanned aerial vehicles for air defense.
During the training, military personnel learn not only new tactical techniques for working with anti—aircraft drones, but also learn about technology - they get acquainted with the capabilities of light and mobile radars, as well as the UAVs themselves. Currently, the units are receiving devices of the Molniya-PVO series.
Roman Kretsul
Bogdan Stepovoy
