Ukraine Defence Forum

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The Ukrainian army began to use an unarmed Polish-made SKOT R-3M command armored personnel carrier, the vehicle was bought with the money of volunteers. The OT-64 armored personnel carrier was developed in 1959 in Czechoslovakia, since 1961 the OT-64 armored personnel carrier began to be produced under license in Poland under the SKOT index. On the basis of the OT-64 armored personnel carrier, a large family of vehicles was created, some of them still remained in the armies of Slovakia, Poland and other countries. Compared with the old armored vehicles, this vehicle is an analogue of the Soviet BTR-60, the main advantage in relation to the Soviet counterpart was a fully armored interior. Armored personnel carriers of the OT-64 SKOT series were armed as standard with 7.62mm, 12.7mm and 14.5mm machine guns, some had the Malyutka ATGM. The thickness of the armor of the OT-64 SKOT machine is from 6 to 13 mm. Weight 14.5 tons, developed speed up to 95 km/h. The crew of 2 people and 10 people landing.

 

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The production of ATGM Stugna-P has been increased in Ukraine, an overview of the complex. Ukraine has quadrupled the production of Stugna-P anti-tank systems, said the Minister for Strategic Industries of Ukraine Oleksandr Kamyshin. ATGM "Stugna-P" adopted by the army of Ukraine in 2011. We can say this is a successful development of the military industrial complex of Ukraine. The ATGM is exported under the name Skif, this is a Ukrainian-Belarusian development. The ATGM is equipped with a semi-automatic laser beam guidance system. It is also possible to control the rocket from a remote control from a closed position. The missile can be programmed to attack from above the target, from a height of 10 meters, or directly. When attacked from above, the missile can miss, according to Forbes American experts. The main advantage of the ATGM is the use of a wired remote control for the missile. The remote control allows the ATGM crew to work from a closed position on a television channel, this is convenient and the ATGM crew is safe. The range of the ATGM flight, when using 152 mm RK-2M-K missiles, is up to 5500 meters, penetration is up to 1100 mm of homogeneous steel. When using 130 mm RK-2S missiles, armor penetration is about 800 mm. The mass of anti-tank systems with a rocket is 90 kg. The price of the Stugna-P ATGM is about 20 thousand dollars.

 

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Marine drone Sea Baby, the third type of marine drones in Ukraine. The Security Service of Ukraine has published a photo and video of its sea drone Sea Baby, which means "Sea Baby" in Russian. At the moment, it turns out that this is the third type of sea drones in Ukraine. Apparently, Ukraine has begun to actively develop its marine drones, in the absence of a fleet, this is a completely logical decision. There is practically no information about the Sea Baby drone, it is known that the drone is controlled via satellite Internet and is equipped with 450 kilograms of explosives

 

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The use of the KBA-118 mortar by the Ukrainian army, review. Footage of the use of the KBA-118 mortar by the Ukrainian army has been published. Mortar KBA-118 caliber 60 mm, developed in the Kiev design bureau "Artillery weapons" and first shown in 2013. The KBA-118 mortar is in service with Ukrainian special forces, and is also used by airborne units. The maximum firing range of the mortar is 1500 meters, the rate of fire is up to 20 rounds per minute. Mortar weight 12.5 kg. The mass of mines used is 1.33 kg, mines and mortars comply with NATO standards.

 

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Ukraine has begun testing new underwater drones "Marichka". It is worth noting that the drone is not fully submerged, but rather partially submerged, apparently submerging under water will be used before attacking the target. There are no details about underwater drones yet, it is known that the drone was created to destroy warships, boats, coastal fortifications and bridges. The drone can also be used in reconnaissance missions. The length of the drone "Marichka" is 6 meters, the width is 1 meter, the range of the drone is up to 1000 kilometers. The estimated price of the drone "Marichka" is 16 million hryvnia or 430 thousand dollars.

 

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An attempt to land Ukrainian troops in the Crimea. The Ukrainian army has published footage of the night landing near Olenevka on Cape Tarkhankut in Crimea. Two to four high-speed boats armed with American M2 Browning machine guns and Mk19 automatic grenade launchers were used. The landing itself did not affect anything, the sabotage group conducted demonstrative shooting at the camera and departed back to Burlachya Beam. According to some reports, there was a fight, but there is no video of this event. If there was a fact of the landing of the group, then the water area of the Crimea is not well patrolled by the Russian army. The landings of such groups can lead to diversions at the military facilities of the Crimea.

 

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Ukrainian homemade optical sight created from binoculars and a smartphone. A homemade optical sight consists of binoculars and a smartphone attached to it, used as a monitor. This entire structure is mounted on an American Browning machine gun, how effective this is is not reported.

 

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Ukrainian soldiers have begun dismantling cluster rounds and turning them into ammunition for drones. For these purposes, the M483A1 155-mm cluster shells, manufactured by the Turkish company MKE, previously delivered to Ukraine, are taken and cut into several parts.

 

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Details about the Swedish BvS10 armored personnel carriers of the Ukrainian army. Footage of the use of two-link BvS10 tracked armored personnel carriers by the Ukrainian army has been published; in total, Ukraine received 28 Dutch vehicles. The BvS10 amphibious armored personnel carrier was developed in the first half of the 2000s by the Swedish division of BAE Systems, commissioned by the UK Ministry of Defense. Currently, BvS 10 transporters in different versions are in service with six countries. The main function of the BvS10 is to transport troops and equipment weighing up to 5 tons; the vehicle is also able to cross water obstacles. BvS 10 is a machine with two bodies connected by a special hinge mechanism. The front hull houses the power plant, the driver's cabin and some of the passenger seats. The rear link has the main compartment and is equipped with track drives. The vehicle has protection against small arms fire, which can be enhanced to protect against 14.5 mm bullets. The BvS 10 armored personnel carrier can be armed with 5.56 and 12.7 mm machine guns, as well as a 40 mm grenade launcher. Due to the low ground pressure, not all anti-tank mines are triggered under the vehicle. In different modifications, BvS 10 conveyors use diesel engines of several models with a power of 285 hp. The car's power reserve is 500 km, speed up to 70 km/h. In total, the Bandvagn Skyddad 10 transporter accommodates 12 people, including the crew. The price of the BvS10 transporter is about 1.5 million dollars.

 

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A drone for installing and dropping mines was shown in Ukraine. In Ukraine, drones have begun to be equipped with devices for installing and dropping TM-62M anti-tank mines. The device itself is quite simple and consists of a tray into which the mine is loaded. The drone descends to the ground and the mine slides off the tray. This method is convenient for mining areas where there is tall grass or creating mine barriers on roads.

 

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Ukraine received British heavy drones Malloy T-400. The Ukrainian army received British Malloy T-400 drones. The Malloy T-400 heavy-duty drone is manufactured by Malloy Aeronautics, the drone has electric motors and is equipped with replaceable electric batteries, so there is no need to waste time recharging the batteries, they can simply be replaced. The drone is designed to carry heavy loads and is capable of lifting up to 180 kilograms. In Ukraine, they plan to use the T-400 drone as a backup logistics tool for supplying ammunition, provisions, medicine and fuel, as well as for evacuating the wounded. The drone can also be used for military purposes by equipping it with an ammunition mount, but due to its large signature, the drone will be too noticeable on radar. The T-400 drone can reach speeds of up to 126 km/h, according to the manufacturer, the range of the drone is up to 70 kilometers.

 

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Since there is no topic about the Georgian army, we publish it here. Ukraine also received similar grenade launchers. The Georgian Ministry of Defense received the first batch of Spanish C90 reusable grenade launchers produced by Instalaza. S90 series grenade launchers were also supplied to Ukraine. 90 mm C90 grenade launchers began to be developed in the eighties and have been modernized since then. The grenade launcher is capable of penetrating up to 500 mm of steel and 1000 mm of concrete. Georgian Defense Minister Juansher Burchuladze himself checked the grenade launcher at the test site. The firing range of the grenade launcher, depending on the ammunition, is up to 350 meters for point targets and up to 700 meters for area targets. The grenade launcher is equipped with an optical and opto-electronic sight e-VISION with the ability to select an aiming reticle depending on the type of ammunition used and a magnification factor of 2.5 times. The grenade launcher can be equipped with a night vision device and a thermal imaging sight. The weight of the grenade launcher is about 5 kilograms. The price of the C90 grenade launcher is about 2100 euros.

 

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The Ukrainian army published footage of river crossing exercises using German M3 Amphibious Rig amphibious vehicles. The Netherlands is to supply 30 vehicles. The M3 Amphibious Rig entered German service in 1996 and can deploy pontoons while on the move.

 

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Ukraine will receive German Caracal assault vehicles. The German concern Rheinmetall announced that Ukraine should become the first recipient of Caracal (4x4) vehicles. Under a contract financed by the German government, Ukraine should receive the first five Caracal vehicles by the end of 2023 and a number in 2024. The Caracal air assault vehicle was developed by the German defense company Caracal and was first shown in 2023. The vehicle has a modular design and can be used for transporting troops and cargo, medical evacuation and other purposes. The vehicle can be equipped with machine guns and ATGMs, depending on the mission. The "Caracal" car was created on the Mercedes-Benz G-model 464 series chassis. The power plant is a 6-cylinder Mercedes-Benz diesel engine with a power of 249 hp. which allows the car to reach speeds of up to 130 km/h. The vehicle is able to cross a ford 0.7 meters deep and trenches 0.5 meters deep.