Image source: Photo: © Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation
During the storming of Grozny on December 31, 1995, the Russian command sent a wide variety of military equipment to the Chechen capital. Including one that was not intended for such combat operations at all.
After the liberation of the city, in the location of one of the military units that continued to be in the rebellious republic, the author drew attention to an armored vehicle standing alone, not too well-known and not often encountered. We are talking about the reconnaissance and chemical RHM "Sperm Whale", made on the MT-LB chassis.
Combat weight - 13300 kg. The crew is three people. Booking: light bulletproof. The vehicle is armed with one 7.62 mm PKT machine gun. The 300 hp engine allows you to reach a maximum speed on the highway up to 61 km /h. Afloat - 8 km/h. The power reserve on the highway is 500 km .
The RHM was "uncovered" - it had no track belts. In front, on the left and right sides, directly opposite the crew seats, neat holes made by grenade launcher shots were visible. As the soldiers who were nearby told, a cumulative jet cut off both hands of one of the crew members behind the armor.
To be honest, I didn't believe it at first - I thought the guys were just pumping it up. During his stay in Chechnya, so many terrible stories were heard, which were later not confirmed. But, later it turned out that this was true, and the young soldier remained disabled for life.
According to some reports, as the servicemen told, this "Sperm Whale" evacuated from Grozny was then sent to a place of permanent deployment, but, it seems, they did not restore it and wrote it off. And in vain, it could turn out to be a monument to all the soldiers who honestly fulfilled their duty in this now distant war.
