Russia struggles to counter growing threat of Ukrainian marine drones
The Armed Forces of the Russian Federation are unable to defend themselves against night attacks by surface drones operated by Ukrainians, reports the portal Bulgarian Military. Moscow is searching for solutions to improve defense against unmanned marine attacks, while Ukraine is constantly upgrading its designs.
The Russian Black Sea Fleet has been in increasingly worse condition for months. This is primarily due to regular attacks by Ukraine's armed forces, which effectively eliminate successive Russian ships.
This, however, is not the only reason why the Russian Federation's navy is facing growing problems. Constructing or repairing damaged ships usually takes much more time than similar work on land equipment. As a result, every destroyed or damaged vessel in the Black Sea Fleet is impossible to replace quickly.
It is also noteworthy that the Russians themselves admit they do not know how to defend against the threat posed by Ukrainian surface drones, according to the Bulgarian Military portal. The defensive forces usually conduct attacks at night, when the readiness of Russian crews is significantly lower than during the day. As a result, successive Russian ships are being sunk.
The tactic Ukrainians use that the Russians can't defend against
The Russians need additional tools to help their army strengthen the Black Sea Fleet's protection. Therefore, the authorities have commissioned the Russian company Laboratory PPSH to produce, among other things, thermal imaging systems mounted on heavy machine guns, according to Denis Oslomenko, the company's general director. The thermal imaging systems are intended to help the navy observe the waters under challenging conditions, i.e., at night when Ukrainian marine drones typically attack.
Oslomenko emphasizes that the Russians cannot defend themselves against drones due to the "problem of lacking thermal imaging equipment among soldiers". However, he notes that equipping the army with thermal sights and targeting systems, which the Russian authorities are seeking, will not solve 100 per cent of the problem posed by Ukrainian activity in the Black Sea. "These systems will not completely stop Ukrainian drones, but they will significantly reduce their effectiveness," he said.
The aforementioned sights, on which Laboratory PPSH is working, are intended to increase the capabilities of the Russian Federation's army by, among other things, extending the detection range of targets. This range is supposed to be over 1 kilometer. Additionally, all soldiers on board Russian ships should be equipped with thermal binoculars to report approaching drones. Currently, the Russians are not handling this problem well and are unable to fend off attacks by Ukrainians.
Meanwhile, the Ukrainians primarily use Magura V5 drones for military actions against Russia. These popular marine drones are over 5 meters long and about 1.5 meters wide. Their design allows the drone to carry a heavy explosive load, and to make it harder to shoot down; it can accelerate to speeds of up to 80 kilometres per hour. The Ukrainians regularly upgrade this weapon, mounting, among other things, R-73 missiles on it.
