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
The Russian military continues to hunt down Ukrainian howitzers in the special operation zone with Lancet loitering munitions.
Between April 28 and 30, videos surfaced online showing recent Lancet strikes against an American-made M777 towed 155 mm howitzer, a Soviet-made 2A36 Giatsint-B towed 152 mm howitzer, an American-made M109 self-propelled 155 mm howitzer and two Soviet-made 2S1 Gvozdika self-propelled 122 mm howitzers of Kiev forces.
The ZALA Aero Group, a subsidiary of Russia’s defense giant Kalashnikov Concern, 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.
According to Lostarmour.info, a website that tracks and documents military losses, there have been at least 231 Lancet strikes against Kiev forces since the start of the Russian special military operation in Ukraine. At least 42 of the strikes took place during April.
Lancet loitering munitions were used to destroy or damage at least 64 Ukrainian howitzers, including many supplied by NATO states.
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