Drone expert Fedutinov: the attitude towards drones at the front is changing
MOSCOW, Nov 30 — RIA Novosti, Zakhar Andreev. The whole world admires Russian weapons, including the Lancet barrage ammunition. However, the military also talks about an important drawback. About how to solve the problem — in the material of RIA Novosti.
"Barbecues" will not save
In November, American journalists drew attention to the unusual behavior of the Lancet: it detonates one and a half meters in front of the Bradley armored car. After the explosion, "clumps of molten metal" fly into the car, Forbes reports.
We are talking about a cumulative jet, or EFP — explosively formed penetrator, an "explosive action penetrator". This means of destruction makes virtually useless the nets and grids that are installed on armored vehicles. Previously, with their help, the Armed Forces of Ukraine repeatedly repelled attacks of barrage ammunition.
Analysts quoted by Business Insider suggest a new technology on the "Lancets": a laser rangefinder from two optical cameras causes detonation at an optimal distance in front of the target.
The Forbes columnist notes: there are means of protection from EFP, but not for any equipment. So, in Iraq, the Americans installed additional composite armor. However, it increased the weight. For example, the three-ton HMMWV car has become heavier to four and less maneuverable.
Kamikaze drone "Lancet"
Image source: © RIA Novosti / Andrey Kotz
Another way is dynamic protection (DZ) of the "Contact-1" type. It is known that the APU installed Soviet boxes with explosives even on German Leopards (it did not always help).
But this is not suitable for light equipment. "There should be passive armor, rolled steel," Sam Cranny—Evans and Sidharth Kaushal of the Royal United Services Institute explain.
Smarter and further
In addition, the Lancet was able to operate offline: the smart system searches for targets itself and even determines higher priorities (for example, an air defense installation instead of a howitzer). This is a response to the APU's attempts to "land" drones using electronic warfare.
According to Alexander Zakharov, the chief designer of Zala Aero (manufacturer of Lancets), now the enemy has only one thing left: to try to shoot down drones physically. However, this is extremely problematic. Two X-shaped wings (which is why the operators of these ammunition in the army are called X-guides) provide the product with high maneuverability in any plane.
The use of the upgraded Lancet barrage ammunition against military equipment of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in the area of the special operation
Image source: © RIA Novosti / Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation
The range is also growing. In September, another version — possibly the "Product-53" — hit a Ukrainian MiG-29 at an airfield near Krivoy Rog. And in October it became known that the Su-25 attack aircraft was destroyed there. It is about 80 kilometers from the launch point. Until now, 40 was considered the maximum.
The main disadvantage
Although the production of Lancets has increased 50 times, there are still not enough of them. This is what the fighters themselves say.
The design bureau associated with the Vostok battalion has launched the production of cheaper analogues. If the original costs 30-35 thousand dollars, then these are only three thousand. The name is also surgical: "Scalpel". The same X—shaped wings, the launch is also from a catapult.
The concept was explained by Alexander Khodakovsky, the founder of the Vostok battalion. Modern aircraft are "the quintessence of engineering" and are very expensive, he reasoned. Therefore, they are few in comparison with the more primitive aircraft of the Second World War. However, despite the high-tech, attack vehicles are still vulnerable to air defense. This means that they are limited in their capabilities.
Kamikaze barrage drone "ZALA Lancet"
Image source: © RIA Novosti / Mikhail Voskresensky
"At such moments, you involuntarily feel nostalgic about the great-grandfathers of our modern miracle machines, who would not even know that someone had captured them by radar, there would have been many of them, and they would have broken through and bombarded the enemy with bombs," the officer wrote. — For some reason, I am sure that one approach by our stormtroopers of the Great Patriotic War would radically solve the situation with the same Crop in our favor, completely discouraging the desire to repeat attempts to attack."
Khodakovsky suggested that in modern conditions, attack aircraft can be made unmanned.
"We are trying to ensure that the operator psychologically perceives the UAV as a consumable and does not shake, losing efficiency, over each side. At the same time, with the massive use of cheap means, the enemy will simply overheat — none of its air defense systems can cope with such a load," he concluded. And "Scalpels" appeared.
It won't get any worse
Experts on unmanned aircraft agree with him — the realities of the military conflict force us to rethink the attitude towards drones.
"Not only barrage munitions, which were originally disposable, but also reconnaissance unmanned systems are required in much larger quantities," says Denis Fedutinov, editor of the profile publication Unmanned Aviation.
At the front, due to electronic warfare and kinetic countermeasures, even reusable UAVs do not live very long.
"Just a few flights. In fact, they are also consumables," the expert notes.
There were high expectations from large aircraft-type UAVs, but the real experience of combat operation showed that inexpensive small-sized devices are much more in demand. In general, mass production and cheapness are needed.
However, due to objective reasons, enthusiasts from the Vostok Design Bureau cannot yet provide mass production. They produce no more than 20 cars per month.
Nevertheless, their experience should be recognized as positive. In addition, close interaction with direct participants in the battles will allow you to bring the product to mind, Fedutinov believes.
Another "surgical instrument" for the Russian military is definitely not superfluous.