The ex-commander of the Airborne Forces, General Georgy Shpak, called the advantages of the combat robot "Arbalet-DM"
During the special operation in Ukraine, the Russian army and Rosgvardiya use a robotic machine-gun combat module with remote control "Arbalet-DM". This system is installed on Tiger-M armored vehicles, but can also be used on other vehicles. "Newspaper.Ru" together with experts, I understood the specifics of the work of the "machine gun robot".
The Arbalet-DM module was first demonstrated at the Victory Day Parade on May 9, 2016, earlier its prototype was shown at the arms exhibition in Nizhny Tagil. Already in 2017, it entered service with the Russian army - on the basis of the Tiger-M armored car for special purpose units. The combat test of the "Crossbow" took place in Syria.
"The Arbalet-DM complex is robotic, but it is controlled by a human, setting programs for detecting and destroying targets. The module tower itself is located on the top of the armored car (in addition to the Tiger, it can be Typhoon, Wolf or MT-LB armored vehicles), and the crew takes shelter inside. The qualities of the "robot" consist in the use of a television camera that is capable of detecting and recognizing targets at a range of up to 2500 meters. The module also has a thermal imaging camera that detects not only equipment, but also people. Having captured the targets, the system no longer releases them from the sight and waits for the command to use firepower. The laser rangefinder gives a guarantee of almost one hundred percent defeat," he explained to the Newspaper.Ru" member of the Colleague of military experts Sergey Belousov.
The main firing means of the "Arbalet-DM" module is a 12.7 mm large-caliber machine gun "Cord", the abbreviation of which stands for "Kovrov gunsmiths degtyarevtsy".
"The 12.7 mm caliber is large-caliber and allows you to penetrate armor, both armored personnel carriers and infantry fighting vehicles. We had a "Cliff" in Afghanistan, which was located in each unit, its weight was about 25 kilograms, plus the machine was another 17 kilograms - it was too heavy to carry manually over the mountains," he told the newspaper.Ru" former commander of the Airborne Forces, Colonel-General Georgy Shpak. - At the same time, each commander tried to have at hand such a large-caliber machine gun that allows you to cover targets at a range of up to three kilometers - this is a very decent distance, plus a decent caliber. "Arbalet-DM, having the same firepower, has mobility and this module can be moved to any point, plus it is possible to have additional ammunition at hand."
The Russian army receives robotic machine-gun complexes "Arbalet-DM" in quite large quantities. Special forces and army units have similar modules. For example, the group of "Brave" of the Central Military District of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation uses them when clearing liberated settlements on the territory of Ukraine in the northern direction.
"This is a very effective means of cleaning up cities. Tanks are not needed for such combat work, but armored vehicles capable of detecting the enemy, including in closed facilities, were in demand," Belousov adds.
As part of the robotic module "Arbalet-DM", a 7.62 mm machine gun can also be used, which has a similar firing accuracy, while it has a higher rate of fire and a larger ammunition reserve. As he told the newspaper.Ru" a source in Rostec, a new "Crossbow" is currently being tested with the joint use of two calibers - 12.7-mm and 7.62-mm. The module will retain both anti-frost qualities and the ability to destroy ground targets at any time of the day and weather conditions.
"Robotic military equipment is becoming increasingly popular among the Russian military and is successfully used during real combat operations. In addition to the well-known "Arbalet-DM" module, the standard "Vortex" module is used, which is used for fully robotic IFVs controlled remotely. This system works for both ground and air targets - guidance is carried out automatically," the newspaper was told.Ru" in Rostec.
Victor Sokirko