The Russians have started using a new version of the Lancet loitering munition, which cannot be defended against by cage armor and anti-drone nets.
Militarnyi reported on this.
The Russian invaders published a video of a Lancet loitering munition attacking a Ukrainian combat vehicle. An interesting feature was that the drone struck the target by exploding a few meters away.
The footage shows that it detonates before reaching the armor, as it used to. This may be evidence of the start of the use of Russian drones with remote detonation on the front line.
When the LM approaches the object at the required distance, it initiates the warhead. The cumulative jet formed by the explosion flies the last meters and hits the target.
This technical solution helps solve the issue with anti-drone nets, where old drone models with a impact fuze often get confused and failed.
Removing the point of explosion from the target by several meters does not reduce the penetration of the munition. It is not yet known whether the drone uses the old KZ-6 charge or has received a similar one with an explosively formed penetrator.
The drone is equipped with a lidar that uses two optical cameras to measure the distance to an object to initiate a warhead at the proper time.
Defense against drones
As of now, there are no effective means of protecting the masts from attack drones except for powerful electronic warfare systems like Bukovel. Therefore, the launch of drones that can bypass the “nets” is extremely bad news.
However, in addition to technical solutions, it is still possible to preserve equipment and operate effectively using camouflage and new tactics.
The Lancet drone’s operation can be detected at a distance due to radio frequency spectrum analyzers. Thus, Zala’s drones, including Lancets and their tracking scout, operate in the 900 MHz control band. More precisely, 868-870 MHz and 902-928 MHz. They have a characteristic “shape” in the form of two sharp peaks.
In addition, preparations for the use of Russian loitering munitions and their launch can be tracked by specific battlefield changes. According to Serhii Flesh, the current versions of Lancets do not have a navigation module protected against electronic warfare. Therefore, before launching, the Russians disable their electronic warfare on GPS frequencies so as not to interfere with the operation of their drones.
“At 1575 MHz, the Russians were interfering for days and suddenly disappeared. The drones did not see GPS and suddenly did. So we are waiting for Lancet,” Serhii shared.