As of: March 10, 2024, 4:16 p.m
By: Felix Busjaeger
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An image of a Russian Sukhoi Su-34 fighter bomber posted on the Russian Defense Ministry's official website on August 18, 2016.
The aircraft should also be able to fire the FAB-1500 glide bombs.
(Archive image) © Russian Defense Ministry Press S/picture alliance / dpa
A modified bomb causes horror in the Ukraine war.
Russia is using the explosive devices to bypass anti-aircraft defenses - and break Ukraine's morale.
Moscow/Kiev - It is a relic of the Soviet era, modified for use in the Ukraine War: Russia's army repeatedly uses multi-ton FAB-1500 glide bombs at the front.
The aerial bomb decimates Ukraine's defenses and could threaten the balance between troops.
This is not the first time that Vladimir Putin has arranged for Cold War-era technologies to be used in the Ukraine war.
But changing the FAB-1500 from a free-fall bomb to a gliding bomb turns out to be an effective innovation.
Russia relies on the FAB-1500 glide bomb in the Ukraine war: the aim is to destroy Ukrainian cities
Casualties in the Ukraine war have been high since the fighting began.
The targeted use of bombs also causes massive damage to the country's infrastructure - and also breaks the morale of the population.
After the Ukrainian defenders received effective anti-aircraft defense through Western arms deliveries, it initially appeared that Russia's army on the front was having less success with its air strikes.
The modified FAB-1500 glide bomb from Russia could change this again.
The bomb is essentially a 1.5-ton weapon, almost half of which consists of high explosives.
Unlike free-fall bombs, the modified bomb in the Ukraine War can be dropped in the air by fighter aircraft and glide a distance of about 60 to 70 kilometers to hit targets.
In this way, the pilots bypass the Ukrainian air defense systems.
Several videos from the front lines of the Ukrainian war demonstrate how effective this approach is in practice: While Putin's fighter jets can stay at a safe distance, the bombs cause massive destruction in the Ukrainians' defense lines.
Immense destructive power of FAB-1500 glide bombs: Russia uses deadly weapon in Ukraine war
The
Telegraph
also reports on the videos and refers to Russian military bloggers.
In the videos, the bombs fly diagonally into the picture before hitting the buildings and exploding in fireballs.
An excerpt shows a building collapsing after being hit.
Apparently the recordings come from near the front in Donbass, but they cannot be independently verified.
For Russia's propaganda apparatus, the destructive power and effectiveness of the FAB-1500 glide bomb is a testament to the ingenuity and superiority of the Russian army.
As
CNN
writes in an article about Russia's glide bombs, the FAB-1500, which is about as heavy as a medium-sized car, is becoming a deadly weapon in the Ukraine war thanks to a guidance system and fold-out wings.
Unlike drones, it is in the air for a shorter time after being shot down, making it difficult for air defense to attack the target.
Among those quoted is Joseph Trevithick, who wrote about the development of the bomb for TheWarZone.
The expert says the glide bombs "provide a new and far more destructive stand-off attack option for many of Russia's tactical jets, which also helps pilots stay further away from enemy defenses."
“The FAB-1500 is hell” – Ukrainian morale endangered by Russia’s bomb in the Ukraine war
Russian propagandists see the FAB-1500 glide bombs as a miracle weapon and a great success for Russia's army.
Western observers also confirm the combat effectiveness of the bombs: The Institute for the Study of War (ISW) wrote in a report at the beginning of February based on Russian information that the attacks with FAB-1500 glide bombs had been intensified.
Unlike smaller bombs that have been used primarily in the Ukraine War, the detonation power of the FAB-1500 is enormous.
Soldiers are said to have suffered serious injuries due to the pressure wave following the explosion.
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“It puts a lot of pressure on the morale of the soldiers.
Not all of our boys can withstand this.
“They are more or less used to the FAB-500 now, but the FAB-1500 is hell,” a soldier from the front-line town of Krasnohorivka was quoted by
CNN
.
Russia uses new bomb in Ukraine war: Cost-effective method to increase combat effectiveness
The use of FAB-1500 gliding bombs is not new.
The use of modified explosive devices was reported for the first time last fall.
Meanwhile, the former free-fall bombs are to be converted into a cheap but powerful version of a rocket at a factory near Moscow.
For Russia, this appears to be a cost-effective method of increasing combat effectiveness in the Ukraine war.
The glide bombs could also have a significant impact on the course of the Ukraine war.
Although the gliding bomb causes terror on the front lines of the Ukrainian war, it has a crucial disadvantage that limits its usability: once dropped, the explosive device can no longer be controlled and glides into the target.
This makes it unsuitable for fighting against mobile targets.
However, Russia is most likely using the FAB-1500 for a different reason: the past has already shown that Russian warfare relies on grueling destruction before ground troops advance on a large scale.
The current approach could also herald the start of a new offensive in the Ukraine war.
(fbu)