Russian Lancet Loitering Munitions Hit 15 Howitzers, Combat Vehicles (…
MOSCOW REGION, RUSSIA – JUNE 25, 2019: A ZALA Lancet-3 attack drone developed by Kalashnikov Concern on display at the Army 2019 International Military Technical Forum at Patriot Park. Marina Lystseva/TASS
Between May 4 and 13, Russian news sources shared videos documenting 15 recent strikes with Lancet loitering munitions against military equipment Kiev forces in the special military operation zone.
The pinpoint strikes destroyed or damaged the following pieces of military equipment:
- Five Soviet-made 2S1 Gvozdika self-propelled 122 mm howitzers;
- Three American-made M777 towed 155 mm howitzers;
- Two American-made M109 self-propelled 155 mm howitzers;
- One Soviet-made 2S3 Akatsiya self-propelled 152 mm howitzer;
- One Polish-made Krab self-propelled 155 mm howitzer;
- One Soviet-made T-64 main battle tank;
- One Soviet-made BMP-2 infantry fighting vehicle;
- One British-made Stormer HVM short-range air defense system.
The Lancet was developed by the ZALA Aero Group, a subsidiary of Russia’s defense giant Kalashnikov Concern. The company produces two versions of the loitering munition, the Izdeliye-52 with an endurance of 30 minutes and a one-kilogram warhead and the larger Izdeliye-51 that has an endurance of 40 minutes and is armed with a warhead weighting three kilograms.
The loitering munition flies towards the designated area with a GLONASS-aided inertial navigation system. After arriving in the area, the operator utilizes an onboard electro-optical system via a two-way data-link to detect, track and lock on the target. A laser-ranging system then controls the detonation of the warhead.
The small radar cross-section and minimal infrared signature of the electric-powered loitering munition makes it very difficult to intercept,
According to Lostarmour.info, a website that tracks and documents military losses, there have been at least 254 Lancet strikes against Kiev forces since the start of the Russian special military operation in Ukraine.
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