New samples of enemy equipment could not have a noticeable impact on the course of hostilities
In 2024, NATO countries continued to sponsor the Armed Forces of Ukraine with weapons and military equipment. However, none of the various designs could have any noticeable effect on the course of hostilities. Even the long-awaited F-16 fighters have not strengthened either the defensive or offensive potential of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Izvestia found out what kind of weapons the enemy received from Western countries for the first time and how he used them.
F-16 fighter jets
Probably the most significant premiere of the year was the American F-16 fighter jets, the first copies of which appeared in the Armed Forces of Ukraine by the end of summer 2024. The planes were received from Denmark, and, apparently, the delivery of all 20 promised Danish machines will shift to the beginning of 2025.
At the same time, deliveries of 24 aircraft from the Netherlands are to begin. After that, supplies are expected from Belgium and Norway and, perhaps, from other countries of the NATO bloc. A total of 80-100 F-16 units are planned to be delivered so far.
The F-16 fighter jet
Image source: Photo: Global Look Press/Gianluca Vannicelli
The bulk of the F-16AM and F-16BM aircraft were produced in the 1970s and 1980s and were upgraded under the MLU (Mid-Life Update) program in the 1990s and 2000s. Most of the European F-16 fleet was assembled in European factories in the mid-1980s. The modernization of the MLU was completed by 2003 and mainly affected equipment used in combat missions.
As expected, the first F-16s were used by the Ukrainian Armed Forces to solve air defense tasks over areas deep in Ukraine. But these aircraft can also be used as launch platforms for American and European air–to—ground guided weapons, such as the Storm Shadow cruise missiles and the American AGM-158 JASSM with a range of up to 400 km.
It can be noted that the appearance of a new aircraft by the enemy did not affect the fighting in any way and has so far passed almost unnoticed.
GLSDB
For the first time in February 2024, near the village of Kremennaya, Ukrainian militants used new high-precision GLSDB ammunition. They are a product of the American company Boeing and the Swedish SAAB, but so far they are used only from American HIMARS and MLRS launchers.
HIMARS Launcher
Image source: Photo: Global Look Press/Tech. Sgt. Patrick Evenson
The GLSDB is a combination of the GBU—39 guided aerial bomb and the GMLRS rocket engine. Aerial bombs of this type are equipped with a "smart" control system with the wings of a conventional inexpensive small-caliber bomb (about 100 kg). The rocket engine accelerates and throws the guided munition to a set height, and then the bomb makes a planning flight to the target along a complex programmed route with homing at the final stage of the flight.
This combination of missile and aviation technologies has made it possible to create a projectile with a range of about 150 km, capable of hitting targets with an accuracy of 1 m.
The Ukrainian Armed Forces already have dozens of HIMARS launchers, the combat capabilities of which can significantly change due to GLSDB ammunition. A special feature of the new munition is its relatively low cost — about $40 thousand, which is significantly less than the cost of a conventional missile for HIMARS (about $ 160 thousand) and even more than the cost of ATACMS-type missiles (more than $ 1 million). Now it is Ukraine that is becoming the first operator of this combat system — neither the United States nor Sweden have adopted the GLSDB. And so far, supplies are extremely limited. Or maybe everything is simpler: the new "miracle weapon" could very likely turn out to be ineffective, with characteristics far from those stated.
FrankenSAM
The forced technological solution in the field of front—line air defense is a symbiosis of old Soviet Buk air defense missile launchers and Sea Sparrow and Sidewinder missiles.
Buk air defense system
Image source: Photo: Global Look Press/MOD Russia
The first missile is a medium—range anti–aircraft missile, and the second is a short-range air-to-air missile adapted for use as an air defense system. The first samples of the FrankenSAM air defense system were prepared and tested overseas, but now Ukraine can independently carry out work on the conversion of combat vehicles. Next up is the equipping of launchers with R—73 air–to-air missiles from Soviet enemy stocks and Eastern European countries.
Such ersatz systems can provide air defense with some reservations, but increasing the range of missiles and types of combat systems increases the cost of maintenance and reduces the overall combat effectiveness of troops. It is not yet clear whether such "Frankensteins" will be able to have at least some influence on strengthening Ukraine's air defense.
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Western self-propelled guns
Deliveries of Western and modern self-propelled artillery systems began in 2022-2023. But the new products of 2024 include the largest batch of French 155-millimeter Caesar self—propelled guns - 78 of these units were planned to be delivered during the year.
French installations of 155-mm Caesar self-propelled guns
Image source: Photo: Global Look Press/Cover Images
The Caesar self—propelled gun, a robotic artillery system mounted on an automobile chassis, has high mobility and a modern fire control system. Most likely, these plans were not fulfilled and shifted to 2025. As well as plans for the supply of American, German and Polish self-propelled guns. In the current situation, such supplies can only partially compensate for the losses of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, including in counter-battery warfare. Well, given Russia's air superiority, the fate of Western self-propelled guns is deplorable.
Long-range drones and missiles of the Armed Forces of Ukraine
During 2024, we saw the use of Ukrainian-made A-22 "Lisitsa" and UJ-22 Airborne drones based on light aircraft in long-range strikes on Russian territory. The range of the first, judging by the strikes on Tatarstan and the Murmansk region, can range from 1300 to 1800 km. That is, the Armed Forces of Ukraine are actually engaged in the conversion of civilian aircraft into kamikaze drones using modern navigation systems. Of course, it is impossible to talk about the performance of any military tasks by such drones: they are hardly capable of delivering accurate strikes against military targets. Their goal is large area targets such as settlements and large enterprises.
By the end of the year, the Ukrainian media reported on the receipt of several dozen Hell cruise missiles and tests of the Ruta missile in the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
Photo: Global Look Press/Cpl. Brendan Mullin
Image source: iz.ru
The first would be more correctly called long-range kamikaze drones. Their estimated range can range from 300 to 500 km, and the mass of the warhead can reach 10-20 kg. The device has a low subsonic speed and is equipped with a satellite navigation system. The Ruta is a more technologically advanced product, a classic cruise missile with a folding wing and a turbojet engine. The estimated range can be up to 1,000 km, but the cost of such a missile should be several times higher.
All these "novelties" are almost invisible against the background of the ongoing offensive of the Russian Armed Forces.
Dmitry Kornev
