Single source — Display is not verification. The value lies in what the party itself publishes or claims: doctrine, self-image, announcements.
«Не дали розрядити пакет: FPV-дрон Signum випалив заряджений «Град» окупантів» (ArmyInform: 'Not allowed to empty the pack: Signum FPV drone burns out a loaded Russian Grad')
2026-10-30SINGLE SOURCE
The Signum battalion of Ukraine's 59th Assault Brigade of Unmanned Systems has released video in which, according to the unit, a Ukrainian FPV drone struck a Russian BM-21 Grad multiple rocket launcher. The Russians had moved the launcher into a firing position with rockets loaded in the tubes and fired only two rockets before it was hit. The compilation also shows strikes on other Russian transport and support vehicles: a pickup that soldiers jumped out of just before the attack, a quad bike, a camouflaged car and other equipment. No location for the Grad strike is given.
ArmyInform notes that this is not Signum's first success against Russian rocket artillery. Earlier this year the unit hit several Grads on the Lyman axis, one while it was moving to a firing position and another while it was firing. According to the battalion, such strikes forced Russian forces to pull their MLRS further back from the front line. This points to the vulnerability of Russian rocket artillery to FPV drones in the period between deployment and firing.
Single source: ArmyInform is a Ukrainian (MoD/defence) outlet; claims are not independently verified.
«Взрыв прогремел на поставляющем боеприпасы Украине испанском заводе» (WarGonzo: 'Explosion at Spanish plant supplying ammunition to Ukraine') — three injured at the Granada munitions factory
2026-10-30SINGLE SOURCEMILBLOGGER
WarGonzo reports a powerful explosion at around 9 a.m. at the Granada munitions factory (Fábrica de Municiones de Granada, FMG) in El Fargue, in which three people were injured. The channel stresses the plant's link to deliveries to Ukraine. FMG is part of Slovakia's MSM Group, employs more than 260 people and makes artillery and mortar ammunition, propellant and missile components. Citing Spanish trade media, WarGonzo says that in 2023 and the first half of 2024 Spain supplied Ukraine with up to 140,000 155 mm artillery shells and about 44,500 120 mm mortar rounds, worth more than 200 million euros. It says FMG was named among the producers and suppliers.
The channel says this was the second incident linked to the factory within a few weeks. On 13 October a lorry carrying mortar ammunition from the plant overturned on the A-4002 road near El Fargue, spilling part of its load. The road was closed, Andalusian authorities declared a pre-emergency alert, and police, firefighters and the TEDAX bomb-disposal unit were sent. WarGonzo notes that, according to Spanish media, no direct link between the October accident and the explosion has been established and the investigation is ongoing. The post does not claim sabotage.
Single source: WarGonzo is a personal/editorial pro-war Telegram channel, not a Russian MoD position; milbloggers can contradict each other and the MoD.
«Белорусы показали, как правильно делать мангалы» (WarGonzo: 'The Belarusians showed how to make cope cages properly')
2026-10-27SINGLE SOURCEMILBLOGGER
WarGonzo reports that Belarus's State Military-Industrial Committee has presented a modular lattice anti-drone protection kit ('mangal', cope cage) for the 122 mm BM-21B 'BelGrad' multiple rocket launcher. The work was done by the 2566th Radio-Electronic Armament Repair Plant, the enterprise that carried out the deep modernisation of Soviet Grad systems. The structure covers the cab, the ammunition racks and the launcher, and according to the developer can be fitted in the field by the crew if needed.
The BelGrad is a Belarusian modernisation of the Soviet Grad: it uses a MAZ-6317 chassis instead of the Ural truck, and its carried ammunition load is increased from 40 to 100 rockets, while the launcher retains 40 tubes for 122 mm rockets.
WarGonzo contrasts this with the Russian army, where artillery and tank crews often have to improvise protective cages from whatever is at hand, and hopes the Belarusian example will push Russian manufacturers to turn front-line improvisation into a standard factory solution. This is a single source from a Russian milblogger: a personal/editorial voice, not an MoD position; milbloggers can contradict each other and the MoD. Not independently verified.
«What Is Currently Known About russia's 2S38 Derivatsiya-PVO Anti-Aircraft Artillery System and Its Capabilities Against UAVs?» (Defense Express)
2026-10-23SINGLE SOURCE
Defense Express wrote this explainer after a photo of the Russian 2S38 Derivatsiya-PVO self-propelled anti-aircraft gun appeared online, reportedly taken during the Center-2026 exercises in early October 2026. The author, Ivan Kyrychevskyi, is a serviceman in the 413th Raid Regiment of Ukraine's Unmanned Systems Forces and a weapons expert at Defense Express. He finds it striking that Russian propaganda has said so little about a system it calls "unique", given that it has yet to prove itself in Ukraine.
According to the article, a prototype on the BMP-3 chassis was first shown in 2017 as a planned replacement for the Soviet ZSU-23-4 Shilka and 2S6 Tunguska. It carries a 57 mm 2A90 gun, described as a development of the Soviet S-60. The announced figures were 120 rounds per minute, 148 rounds on board, an effective range of about 6 km against aerial targets and a maximum engagement altitude of about 4.5 km. The system was still in development in February 2022. In April 2024 the state corporation Rostec announced that work had been completed and that the system was ready for use against Ukraine. In autumn 2025 a prototype was shown to Vladimir Putin, which according to the author changed nothing about the project's status.
The author argues that if Russia could mass-produce the 2S38, it could pose a significant threat to all types of drones used by Ukraine's armed forces. He adds that there is still no information that Russia is ready to start serial production. This is a single source: Defense Express, a Ukrainian defence outlet (here an analysis by a serving Ukrainian soldier); the claims have not been independently verified.
«Зверху ми бачили верхівку айсберга» — на Куп’янському напрямку одним дроном знищили склад ракет (ArmyInform: '"From above we saw the tip of the iceberg": in the Kupiansk direction, one drone destroys a rocket depot')
2026-10-22SINGLE SOURCE
The duty officer of the 'Legion' unmanned systems battalion of Ukraine's 33rd Separate Mechanised Brigade, call sign 'Veresen', told Army TV that his unit used FPV drones to strike a Russian 9P132 Grad-P ('Partizan') light rocket launcher and a rocket store next to it in the Kupiansk direction. According to ArmyInform, the launcher was found and designated by a neighbouring unit of Ukraine's Unmanned Systems Forces, after which one FPV drone of the 33rd Brigade was sent against it; another drone then hit the store.
The officer says the store was not found by chance: the crew searched for it deliberately because, in his account, Russian forces keep ammunition for the Partizan close to the launcher, since each rocket is bulky and weighs about 46 kg. The ground-level store was covered with camouflage netting; from the air the crew saw only four or five rockets, but he believes more were kept in a pit, which would explain what he called a significant secondary explosion. The number of rockets destroyed is not known.
The account illustrates a familiar pattern of Ukrainian drone units hunting for logistics close to Russian firing positions, using the launcher as a pointer to its ammunition. This is a single source: ArmyInform, the news agency of the Ukrainian Ministry of Defence, relaying an account by a Ukrainian brigade; the claims have not been independently verified.
Ukrainian battlefield system ComBat Vision releases artillery-aiming training plugin for poorly prepared new gunners and plans a plugin store
2026-10-21
The developers of ComBat Vision, a Ukrainian battlefield reconnaissance and coordination system, have released a plugin that turns artillery fire calculations into a visual training tool, Euromaidan Press reports. The team built it around what it describes as a rapid fall in the quality of specialists entering the military, saying artillery soldiers are sometimes "yesterday's TikTokers or 'tanks' players".
The plugin draws a round's flight path from the weapon's firing tables and the dispersion ellipse for that gun and munition, warns of obstacles on the calculated trajectory and simulates the shell after firing with an added training error. It then shows real or simulated bursts, averages the correction over a series of hits and lets the user enter corrections, including by voice. Ballistics come from MyGun, Yaroslav Sherstiuk's app for automated artillery fire calculations. ComBat Vision itself coordinates troops and shares object data, integrating drones, ground robots and security cameras to fix targets in space.
The developers say they will open a plugin store within a week, offering the artillery feature and others such as repeater-coverage calculations and remote control of minefields. Euromaidan Press notes these are announced plans, not demonstrated results. For the Russia picture the item matters mainly as an indicator of the manpower-quality pressure on Ukrainian artillery that Russia's attritional approach seeks to exploit.
«Poland Receives New Batch of HOMAR-K Ammunition with 290-km CTM-290 Ballistic Missiles» (Defense Express)
2026-10-20SINGLE SOURCE
According to Defense Express, the Polish Armament Agency has confirmed delivery of another batch of ammunition for Poland's HOMAR-K multiple rocket launchers. The batch includes CTM-290 ballistic missiles and CGR-080 guided rockets. HOMAR-K is Poland's version of the South Korean K239 Chunmoo. It is mounted on Polish Jelcz trucks and uses the Topaz fire-control system. The CTM-290 is a 600 mm ballistic missile with a stated range of 80–290 km, satellite-aided inertial guidance and a reported CEP of up to 9 m. The CGR-080 is a 239 mm guided rocket with a range of up to 80 km and a warhead of about 90 kg, broadly comparable in role to the US GMLRS. Each launcher carries two pods, and each pod holds either one CTM-290 or six CGR-080s.
Defense Express notes that the CTM-290 was fired from a HOMAR-K in April 2024, but from a launcher in South Korea. The new deliveries indicate that Poland now holds the missiles in its own inventory. The outlet presents the CTM-290 as an alternative to US-supplied ATACMS, whose deliveries it says have reportedly been suspended while the US replenishes its stocks. It also stresses that HOMAR-K gives Poland a precision-strike capability that does not depend on American ammunition. Poland signed a framework agreement in 2022, received its first launchers in 2023 and has since contracted domestic production of 10,000 rockets and missiles. A factory is under construction, and the first Polish-made CTM-290s are expected in 2028.
For this tracker, the relevance lies on NATO's eastern flank: a 290 km reach from Polish territory covers the Kaliningrad exclave and western Belarus, which adds to the deep-strike options opposite Russian and Belarusian forces. Defense Express does not say how many missiles were delivered.
Single source: this is a report by the Ukrainian defence outlet Defense Express, based on a Polish Armament Agency statement, that has not been independently verified.
«Великобурлукское направление: бойцы 1-го мотострелкового полка РВСН» (Dva Mayora: 'Velykyi Burluk direction: fighters of the Strategic Missile Forces' 1st Motor Rifle Regiment')
2026-10-19SINGLE SOURCEMILBLOGGER
The Russian milblogger channel Dva Mayora ("Two Majors") published combat footage from the Velykyi Burluk direction in Ukraine's Kharkiv region, attributed to fighters of the "1st Motor Rifle Regiment of the RVSN" — the Strategic Missile Forces, Russia's nuclear-missile branch. According to the post, the regiment worked together with the special-purpose (SpN) unit "Anvar": aerial reconnaissance located a Ukrainian 2S3 Akatsiya 152 mm self-propelled howitzer, which was then struck. The post calls this "another" set of footage from the joint work, implying earlier releases.
The tactical content is a routine strike claim. The notable element is the unit designation itself: the post presents a motor-rifle regiment carrying the RVSN label as a front-line unit in the Kharkiv region, which points to the Strategic Missile Forces generating ground-combat formations for the war. The post gives no detail on how the regiment was formed, its size, its personnel or when it was deployed, so its exact origin and status cannot be established from this source.
This is a single source: the personal/editorial Telegram voice of a pro-war Russian milblogger, not a Russian MoD position. Milbloggers may contradict each other and the MoD, and neither the strike nor the unit designation has been independently verified.
«Зенитная артиллерия возвращается: справятся ли пушки с реактивными беспилотниками?» (Topwar: 'Anti-aircraft artillery is back: can guns cope with jet-powered drones?')
2026-10-19SINGLE SOURCE
In an analysis for Topwar (Voennoe Obozrenie), author Anatoly Blinov examines whether gun-based air defence can counter jet-powered one-way attack drones such as Russia's Geran-5. Citing Ukrainian military intelligence (HUR), he puts the Geran-5's cruise speed at 450–600 km/h (versus roughly 170–180 km/h for the piston-engined Geran-2), with a range of 950 km and a ceiling of 6 km; combat sightings were at 200 m to 3 km. At 600 km/h a drone covers about 167 m per second and crosses 3 km in some 18 seconds, which leaves gunners a very short window to acquire, track and engage. The article's systems are mostly Western ones in Ukrainian service or in development: the Rheinmetall Skynex with 35 mm Revolver Gun Mk3 and programmable AHEAD ammunition (152 tungsten sub-projectiles per round), the Gepard, the Swedish TRIDON Mk2 40 mm with 3P programmable rounds (purchased for Ukraine by Sweden and Denmark in February 2026), the Italian 76 mm DART guided round, and BAE Systems' 155 mm Hypervelocity Projectile for the US MDACS gun programme. The only Russian system discussed in detail is Rostec's 30 mm ZAK-30 Tsitadel, presented in May 2026 with radar, electro-optical sensors and airburst rounds and reportedly combat-tested.
Blinov contrasts claimed successes with failures. A Stern report citing an internal Ukrainian document claimed that during a 1 April 2026 attack in western Ukraine, two Skynex units (8 guns) suffered hydraulic, loading and tracking failures and let one drone through; Rheinmetall disputed this. Ukraine's Western Air Command, by contrast, claimed a Skynex battery downed 34 Shaheds and two Kh-101 cruise missiles. He also cites Ukrainian Air Force spokesman Yuriy Ihnat on robotic machine-gun turrets with machine vision against Geran-5 (limited mainly by range), and an 8 October engagement in Rivne Oblast in which machine guns fired first and an Igla MANPADS finished off a jet Geran. For the US MDACS he notes a slipped schedule (assessment now in 2030) and a historical cost reference of about $85,000 per guided round.
The author concludes that automated 30–40 mm guns are viable for point defence of individual sites against jet drones, and that programmable and guided rounds can extend reach, but only with precise sensors and expensive ammunition. Magazine depth, reload time and saturation by mass raids remain constraints, and guns must be weighed against EW, interceptor drones and decoys: artillery will hold the 'close sky' over key objects, not the whole airspace. This is a single source: Topwar, a Russian pro-government military portal; its figures and claims have not been independently verified.
«If russia Is Putting "Surplus" T-90M Tanks, BMP-3s, Giatsint-K Howitzers Into Storage, What Does It Mean?» (Defense Express)
2026-10-19SINGLE SOURCE
Defense Express discusses a claim by the OSINT analyst Jompy that Russian forces have apparently begun accumulating relatively modern combat vehicles at their storage bases: T-90M and T-72B3 tanks, BTR-82A armoured personnel carriers, BMP-3 infantry fighting vehicles, BMD-4M airborne combat vehicles, tracked 2S19 Msta-S and wheeled 2S44 Giatsint-K self-propelled howitzers. According to that account, Bases No. 80 and No. 374 near the Finnish border are accumulating 2S43 Malva and 2S44 Giatsint-K wheeled howitzers; Base No. 22 in Arkhangelsk region holds T-90M tanks, BTR-82As and BMP-3s; and Base No. 6018 near the border with Central Asia is gathering BMP-3Ms and BMD-4Ms. The outlet says no clear geographic pattern is yet visible, and a key unknown is whether the vehicles were withdrawn from active units or went straight from the factory into Soviet-era storage hangars.
The article weighs two readings. One is that Russia is shedding heavy armour it now sees as obsolete: armour historian Andrii Tarasenko claims the Russian military has apparently begun reducing its armoured units, although Janes reported in autumn 2025 that Russia was increasing the formal number of armoured units even as operationally available T-72B3, T-80BV and T-90M tanks declined. The other is a revival of the Soviet mobilisation system, in which storage bases held equipment for 'cadre divisions' to be manned in the third stage of mobilisation. If Russia is again stockpiling, the author argues, it may be preparing to recreate such cadre divisions that could be brought up to strength at short notice and potentially used against NATO countries in Europe.
The author, Ivan Kyrychevskiy, is a serviceman of the 413th Raid Regiment of Ukraine's Unmanned Systems Forces and a weapons expert at Defense Express. This is a single source: the Ukrainian defence outlet Defense Express, building on a social-media OSINT claim, and its claims have not been independently verified.
Ukraine's 3rd Army Corps reports first drone strike on Russia's new TOS-3 Drakon thermobaric launcher
2026-10-17
Ukraine's 3rd Army Corps says it has struck a Russian TOS-3 Drakon ("Dragon") thermobaric rocket launcher for the first time, and has published video of the attack, Ukrainska Pravda reports citing the corps' social media. The system was hit by a drone flown by the Muramasa unit of the Kraken Separate Unmanned Systems Regiment, during the corps' Operation Vivaldi in northern Donetsk Oblast. According to the corps, the launcher was attacked about 12 km from the line of contact after it had been observed firing. The report says the system was struck; it does not state whether it was destroyed.
Russia classifies the TOS-3 as a heavy flamethrower system. According to the 3rd Army Corps, it is the newest member of the family that also includes the TOS-1A Solntsepyok and the TOS-2 Tosochka. The corps says the new model has slat armour and explosive reactive armour, fires unguided thermobaric rockets from 15 launch tubes, has an estimated range of 15 km and needs a crew of three.
The claims and the characteristics come from a Ukrainian military unit, a party to the conflict, and have not been independently verified.
«Из миномётчиков в дроноводы» (Krasnaya Zvezda: 'From mortarmen to drone operators')
2026-10-15SINGLE SOURCE
Krasnaya Zvezda profiles a serviceman with the call sign "Shustry", now deputy commander of a UAV platoon in the 10th Tank Regiment. He joined in January 2023 as a member of an 82-mm mortar crew, became gunner and then crew commander, and fought on the Avdiivka, South Donetsk, Kurakhove and Kostiantynivka axes. According to the paper, his mortar crews increasingly relied on drones for fire correction, and in 2024 he was wounded by an FPV drone while delivering ammunition by motorcycle.
The core of the article is an organisational change: on the Kostiantynivka axis in spring 2025, the paper says, firing mortars even at maximum range had become extremely dangerous or impossible, so the command decided to retrain the mortar platoon as drone operators. The platoon was rebuilt into unmanned-systems crews with sappers and UAV operators. It now operates on the Druzhkivka axis, where it escorts assault groups from the air, suppresses firing points, clears the way for and covers the flanks of assault troops and resupplies them, with a strike radius several times the range of a mortar.
Tasks are split between sections: a multicopter section handles target reconnaissance, battlefield observation and assault-group escort; a radio-controlled FPV section mainly delivers supplies to troops at the front or behind enemy lines; and a fibre-optic FPV section carries most of the strike work, which the paper says lets operators reach targets at ranges of several tens of kilometres without being affected by jamming. Shustry also notes higher signature and logistics demands: ground control stations, antennas and generators must now be concealed, and full power supply is required where a mortar crew needed only a power bank. Single source: this is an article by the Russian MoD newspaper Krasnaya Zvezda that has not been independently verified.
«Удар по ЗРК за $45 млн: «Чорний ліс» уразив російський «Бук-М3»» (ArmyInform: A $45 million strike on a SAM system: 'Chorny Lis' hits a Russian Buk-M3)
2026-10-13SINGLE SOURCE
According to Ukrainian state outlet ArmyInform, soldiers of the 'Chorny Lis' ('Black Forest') unit of the 15th Artillery Reconnaissance Brigade located and struck a Russian Buk-M3 surface-to-air missile system on 13 October 2026. The brigade put the value of the system at around $45 million and released video of the strike. It framed the attack as part of an effort to keep Russian air defence 'blinded' and to drain Russia's military-industrial base. The location of the strike and the extent of the damage are not stated.
The article describes the Buk-M3 as a mobile medium-range system intended to engage aircraft, cruise missiles and drones; citing Ukraine's Unmanned Systems Forces, it gives an engagement range of up to 70 km. ArmyInform notes that the same brigade already claimed the destruction of another Buk-M3 of similar value on 31 July, after tracking it and waiting for it to leave its cover before striking.
The $45 million price tag is the brigade's own estimate, and the video does not on its own establish whether the system was destroyed or only damaged. Single source: this is a report by Ukrainian state outlet ArmyInform that has not been independently verified.
«„Мста-С“ против „Богданы“» (Krasnaya Zvezda: 'Msta-S versus Bogdana')
2026-10-12SINGLE SOURCE
Krasnaya Zvezda, the newspaper of the Russian Ministry of Defence, reports that a 152 mm 2S19 Msta-S self-propelled howitzer crew destroyed a Ukrainian Bogdana wheeled self-propelled gun on the Kupiansk axis. The crew belongs to the 236th Guards Artillery Brigade of the 20th Guards Combined Arms Army (Group of Forces 'West'), and its gun commander is a guards senior sergeant with the call sign 'Kolokol'. According to the paper, a Zala reconnaissance drone spotted the Bogdana while it appeared to be preparing to fire. Less than ten minutes passed from detection to opening fire.
The paper's account of the engagement says the gun moved to a firing position and fired a long-range high-explosive fragmentation round. The drone operator then corrected the aim by four degrees to the right, and the second shot was a direct hit that set off the Bogdana's ammunition. The crew left the position at once. When radar picked up Ukrainian drones searching for them, they hid the gun under camouflage netting in a tree line. The commander calls the Msta-S a priority target that Ukrainian strike drones, reconnaissance and artillery hunt constantly. He describes counter-battery fire as the crew's main task.
The article is a heroic-style profile in a state outlet. No imagery or other evidence of the claimed kill is given, and Ukraine has not confirmed the loss. Single source: this is a report by the Russian MoD newspaper Krasnaya Zvezda that has not been independently verified.
According to Defense Express, Ukraine's 43rd Brigade detected a Russian Irbis counter-battery radar with a reconnaissance drone and passed its coordinates to neighbouring Ukrainian units for further action. The brigade released footage of the drone tracking the radar system after it had been spotted. The brigade says the system began to manoeuvre and change position once it was detected, but its coordinates had already been passed on. Defense Express does not say what happened next; other Ukrainian outlets (ArmyInform, United24) report that the radar was then hit, without confirming that it was destroyed (see also the ArmyInform entry of 9 October).
Defense Express describes Irbis as a relatively new Russian counter-battery radar. Russian sources first reported its use publicly in the summer of 2024. The system is designed to locate mortar, tube artillery and multiple rocket launcher positions by tracking the trajectories of munitions, and then send the calculated coordinates to Russian firing units. According to specifications published by Russia, it can also detect aerial targets at ranges of up to 150 kilometres, which gives it a wider surveillance role than locating artillery alone. The article gives no designation index, artillery-detection range or carrier vehicle.
Single source: this is a Ukrainian military-affairs outlet (Defense Express) report that has not been independently verified.
«Тренога против «Града»: зачем российской пехоте «карманная артиллерия»» (Topwar: Tripod versus Grad: why Russian infantry needs 'pocket artillery')
2026-10-09SINGLE SOURCE
Topwar (Voennoe Obozrenie) author Kirill Ryabov describes the Kozerog ('Capricorn'), a light launcher for standard 122 mm Grad rockets made by the Yekaterinburg company BRT, whose founders reportedly have combat experience. The first version was developed in 2023 and went into serial production shortly afterwards. The base model is a single tube on a tripod carriage with folding legs. It weighs about 270 kg without ammunition, is about 2.5–3 m long, can be traversed by hand roughly 20° either side of its axis, and can be fitted with wheels or mounted on a vehicle. Customers have ordered multi-tube versions with up to 9 rails, and a 16-round package is in design. The Kozerog-1M variant adds a mount for the PG-1M panoramic sight, and BRT is reportedly working on a version for 220 mm Uragan rockets. Citing RIA Novosti (7 October), the article says the manufacturer claims about 300 launchers of all variants have been delivered to combat units, including motorised rifle units. That figure comes from the producer alone and some publications give lower numbers.
The idea is to trade firepower for survivability. A BM-21 fires 40 rockets per salvo and is easy to spot, while a Kozerog fires one round from a trench, a log-reinforced dug-in position or a building window, and the crew can then leave. The launcher accepts the full range of 122 mm Grad ammunition, with ranges up to about 20 km. The developer also says it can re-fire rounds that misfired in a full MLRS. The author contrasts it with the Soviet Grad-P 'Partizan' (9P132) of the 1960s, which needed a shortened rocket with about 11 km range. The Kozerog brings the standard round to a light mount.
The author also lists weaknesses: a small ammunition load, dependence on external transport, no disclosed night or low-visibility capability, and vulnerability to counter-battery fire and FPV drones once a fixed position has been used for a long time. Heavier multi-tube and 220 mm versions would, in his view, leave the portable class altogether. He presents the system's niche as area fire beyond most drones' reach, not precise strikes. Single source: this is a Russian pro-war outlet (Topwar) report that has not been independently verified.
Krasnaya Zvezda profiles Lieutenant Dmitry, callsign 'Yeger' ('Huntsman'), commander of the mortar platoon of the 'Shtorm' assault detachment of the Northern Fleet's separate Guards Kirkenes naval infantry brigade (based at Sputnik), now fighting with the 'Tsentr' (Centre) grouping on the Dobropillia axis. According to the article, the platoon previously supported assaults on the Kherson axis, near Krynky and the Antonivskyi bridge. A graduate of the Mikhailovsky Military Artillery Academy, he says the month-long lieutenants' course at the brigade, run by instructors with combat experience, covered much that the academy lacked: extensive shotgun shooting at aerial targets, and updated artillery tactics, radio communications and tactical medicine.
The tactical points the article makes: placing several guns side by side at standard intervals is no longer possible because of losses, so work at the line of contact is done 'strictly gun by gun', with the emphasis on mobility and accuracy. Firing positions are first scouted from the air and then on the ground. The mortars operate only 3-4 km from the Ukrainian forward defence line; since no vehicle (not even a quad bike) can get that close unseen, crews carry the disassembled mortar (over 200 kg) and its ammunition in by hand. Gun pads, ammunition store and counter-battery shelter are built well apart so that one hit does not knock out the rest. Fire is observed and corrected through a quadcopter's live video feed, and after the initial fire mission the platoon fires on targets passed by the assault groups. The officer was wounded the previous autumn when his motorcycle set off a magnetic-fuzed mine scattered a few hours earlier by a Ukrainian 'Baba Yaga' heavy drone on a trail he was scouting.
Single source: this is a report from Krasnaya Zvezda, the newspaper of the Russian Ministry of Defence, that has not been independently verified. Much of the piece is a heroic portrait; the claims about effectiveness are unverified.
Снаряд в самое сердце вражеской разведки (Krasnaya Zvezda: A shell into the very heart of enemy reconnaissance)
2026-10-08SINGLE SOURCE
Krasnaya Zvezda reports that a 152 mm 2S19 Msta-S self-propelled howitzer crew of the 275th Self-Propelled Artillery Regiment (4th Guards Tank Division, 1st Guards Tank Army, 'Zapad' grouping), commanded by a soldier with callsign 'Penza', destroyed a Ukrainian UAV control point in a treeline with its first shot. According to the article, it used extended-range high-explosive fragmentation rounds. Target coordinates came from a reconnaissance UAV crew whose operator had spotted a camouflaged dugout from which Ukrainian drones were being controlled.
The article describes the sequence: the howitzer waited at readiness, moved to a firing position after receiving the target designation, fired at a target described as about 2.5 km away, and caused secondary detonations. The crew then immediately changed position, moved the vehicle into cover and camouflaged it, and replenished ammunition. The article calls this shoot-and-relocate pattern 'a vital necessity' given the density of Ukrainian reconnaissance and strike assets over the battlefield. The gun commander highlights the Msta-S's mobility and range as letting the crew reach the enemy at distances it considers safe. No location beyond the 'Zapad' grouping is given.
Single source: this is a report from Krasnaya Zvezda, the newspaper of the Russian Ministry of Defence, that has not been independently verified. The claimed destruction of the target is unconfirmed.
«Ірбіс» відчув, що пахне смаженим: російська РЛС спробувала втекти, але дрон уже передав координати (ArmyInform: 'Irbis' smelled trouble: Russian radar tried to flee, but the drone had already passed on its coordinates)
2026-10-08SINGLE SOURCE
According to ArmyInform, aerial-reconnaissance crews of Ukraine's 43rd Separate Artillery Brigade spotted a Russian 'Irbis' radar with a reconnaissance drone and kept it under observation. When the radar detected the drone it began manoeuvring and changing position, but the crews had already passed its coordinates to neighbouring units. The brigade published the footage; no location is given and the report does not say whether the radar was subsequently struck.
ArmyInform describes Irbis as a relatively new Russian counter-battery radar that locates mortar, tube-artillery and rocket-artillery positions by tracking projectile trajectories and passes their coordinates to fire units; per Russian claims it can also detect air targets at up to 150 km. Russia first publicly acknowledged its use in summer 2024. The article gives no further type designation and compares it with the Zoopark-1M, which serves a similar purpose.
Single source: this is a report from ArmyInform, the news agency of the Ukrainian Ministry of Defence, based on the brigade's own footage, and has not been independently verified.
Ukrainian artillery reportedly kills Major Alexei Karavaev, commander of Russia's 11th Tank Regiment, on the Kharkiv axis
2026-10-07
Militarnyi reports that Major Alexei Karavaev, call sign "Father", commander of Russia's 11th Tank Regiment, was killed by Ukrainian artillery during the night of 3-4 October 2026. According to the Russian Telegram channel Severny Kanal (linked to Russia's North grouping), Karavaev was travelling to the front line to inspect Russian positions when he was killed. The article gives no more precise location than the Kharkiv direction, where the regiment is currently operating.
The death was first publicised by the Ukrainian OSINT project X from Above OSINT, which found an obituary on a Russian website; Militarnyi also cites the outlet ASTRA. The 11th Tank Regiment belongs to the 18th Motor Rifle Division of the 11th Army Corps, with a permanent base in Gusev, Kaliningrad Region. The regiment previously suffered losses near Kozacha Lopan, when Ukraine's 425th Assault Regiment engaged its personnel during a border-crossing attempt.
Militarnyi says Karavaev is believed to have previously served in the 82nd Motor Rifle Regiment of the 69th Motor Rifle Division, 6th Army; phone contact records refer to "Battalion Commander Sasha Volchansk" and "Father, Special Military Operation, 82nd Regiment, 1st Battalion", suggesting a possible 1st Battalion assignment. That regiment was stationed at the Vovchansk Aggregate Plant, where war crimes occurred in 2024. The death rests on Russian-sourced reports and an obituary as relayed by Militarnyi; no official Russian confirmation is cited.
Taliban Mounts BM-27 Uragan MLRS on BMP-2D Chassis, Did russia Help With This Upgrade? (Defense Express)
2026-10-07SINGLE SOURCE
Defense Express (author: Ivan Kyrichevskyi, a serviceman of the 413th SBS "Raid" regiment and Defense Express expert) reports that the Taliban released video of military drills showing a BM-27 Uragan 220 mm multiple rocket launcher mounted on a BMP-2D tracked chassis. The article notes that the Taliban earlier showed BM-21 Grad systems placed on abandoned American Navistar trucks. According to the author, the logic of the conversion is understandable: the standard Soviet wheeled chassis is complex to maintain, while the tracked armoured vehicle is a more versatile, all-terrain platform.
The article then asks whether Russia could have helped. Arguments for, per the author: the Taliban have restored non-functional T-62 and T-55 tanks, and Soviet tactical missile systems Luna-M and Elbrus were reportedly returned to service in 2022, which might have required outside specialists. Arguments against: the Taliban independently converted numerous BM-21 systems onto American trucks, the Uragan conversion appears to be a single instance, and they restored roughly six UH-60 Black Hawks and ten MD 530F helicopters without apparent external guidance.
The author's conclusion is cautious: the single Uragan modification could well have been done by Taliban engineers on their own, though Russian technical support cannot be definitively ruled out. No evidence of Russian involvement is presented.
Single source: this is a Ukrainian Defense Express report that has not been independently verified.
Russia unveils Izdeliye 347, a truck-mounted ground launcher for a modified LMUR (Izdeliye 305) helicopter missile, at Tsentr-2026
2026-10-03
At the strategic exercise Tsentr-2026, Russia presented a new ground-based missile system, Izdeliye 347 ("Product 347"). It fires a modified LMUR light multipurpose guided missile, which is normally carried by attack helicopters. According to the Russian Ministry of Defence (via RIA Novosti and TASS), the system can strike stationary and moving targets at up to 20 km, and its main feature is that an operator can guide the missile onto the target in the final phase of flight. During the main stage on 2 October at the Chebarkul range (Chelyabinsk region), crews used it against mock artillery positions found by aerial reconnaissance. The ministry did not say how many missiles a launcher carries, who builds it, or when it could enter service.
The two sources describe the carrier differently. Judging by the video, Militarnyi identifies an armoured 6×6 Ural truck carrying a two-missile launcher and a communications mast in the cargo bed. Defence Blog says the ministry did not name the chassis and describes it as an unarmoured truck. Militarnyi adds that in the demonstration one missile hit an "enemy artillery position" at 13.9 km, while another missed its target in an open field by a few metres. This is a Russian MoD presentation, and the performance claims have not been independently verified.
The LMUR (also Izdeliye 305 and Kh-39) is made by KBM in Kolomna, part of Rostec's High Precision Systems holding. It is carried by Mi-28NM and Ka-52M attack helicopters and Mi-8MNP-2 helicopters, and has been used against Ukraine since at least 2022. The basic missile weighs 105 kg, has a 25 kg high-explosive fragmentation warhead, flies at up to 230 m/s, and has a stated range of 14.5 km. It flies to coordinates using inertial navigation with satellite correction, then sends thermal-seeker video to the operator, who selects the target and guides the missile in, so the target does not have to be visible at launch. Militarnyi thinks the system is probably based on the UR-305UD modification with a 25 km range, reported in June 2025. Defence Blog compares the concept to Israel's Spike NLOS and recalls an earlier project, Baikal, to put the LMUR on a tracked armoured vehicle similar to the Khrizantema-S. What happened to Baikal was never made public.
A post by manufacturer ZALA, reposted by the milblogger channel Dva Mayora, sums up September 2026 for the Lancet reconnaissance-strike complex (RUK) in the 'special military operation' zone. According to the post, Lancet crews concentrated on vehicles on Ukrainian logistics routes: pickups, armoured vehicles, special-purpose vehicles and supply trucks, which ZALA presents as systematic work to disrupt the rotation and supply of Ukrainian units.
The post also claims counter-battery work: Lancets reportedly destroyed BM-21 Grad multiple rocket launchers, artillery pieces and an IRIS-T air-defence system, and the listed targets include a tank and an Il-76 aircraft said to carry an electronic-warfare system. The post gives no numbers of strikes or targets. ZALA credits the results to the IRRA (ИРРА) intelligent guidance and target-recognition system, which it says can track and hit moving and camouflaged targets even under active electronic countermeasures.
Caveat: this is single-source reporting from the Russian milblogger channel Dva Mayora (Telegram), relaying promotional content from the manufacturer ZALA. It reflects a personal/editorial and commercial voice, not a Russian MoD position; milbloggers regularly contradict each other and the MoD. The claims, especially the IRIS-T and Il-76 kills, have not been independently verified.
Ukrainian Units Claim Strikes on russian Air Defense: Nemesis Brigade Hits Five Radars and Three SAM Systems, SOF Hit Buk-M3, Radar and Akatsiya (Video)
2026-10-01SINGLE SOURCE
In two video-backed reports between 1 and 3 October, Defense Express relays Ukrainian claims of drone strikes on Russian air defence assets. According to footage published by the Ukrainian General Staff, Special Operations Forces in Luhansk region used reconnaissance and strike UAVs to find and hit a Buk-M3 surface-to-air missile system, a radar station of unspecified type, a 2S3 Akatsiya 152 mm self-propelled howitzer and an armoured combat vehicle of unspecified type. No damage assessment per target was given.
Separately, the 412th Unmanned Systems Brigade "Nemesis" posted footage on Telegram that it says shows the destruction of three P-18 radars, two Kasta radars and three air defence missile systems, eight assets in total. Neither the brigade nor Defense Express names the types of the three missile systems. Defense Express argues that removing such radars and SAM systems opens gaps in the Russian air defence network, letting Ukrainian drones penetrate deeper into Russian-held territory. The claimed losses could not be independently matched to the footage.
Caveat: this is single-source reporting from Defense Express (Ukrainian defence-media outlet), relaying claims by the Ukrainian General Staff and a Ukrainian brigade; the claims have not been independently verified.
Krasnaya Zvezda profiles a soldier with the call sign 'Doc' from the anti-tank battalion of the 238th Guards Artillery Brigade (Southern group of forces), a construction worker mobilised in 2022 who was first trained as a medic. The paper uses his career to illustrate its argument that the war has thinned out combat formations: tasks once handled by a platoon or section are now carried out by pairs of infantrymen, covered mainly by drones rather than artillery and tanks, and the copter-type drone is now displacing the anti-tank guided missile just as ATGMs once displaced artillery in the anti-tank role. As a 9K111 Fagot ATGM operator, 'Doc' reportedly destroyed a Ukrainian tank in March 2023 while repelling an attack on Novobakhmutivka on the Avdiivka axis.
In 2024 the brigade command, intending to form an FPV-drone battery, sent several soldiers, including 'Doc', on a months-long drone-operator course at a training ground, followed by on-the-job practice with experienced crews in other units. In 2025 his crew set up a position in the ruins of Kurakhove; the article describes a strike on a cellar where Russian and Ukrainian infantry occupied separate entrances, with the operator ordered to hit only the Ukrainian one. On the tactical side, the article states that drone crews are the enemy's priority target and describes how Ukrainian drones hunted the crew across two positions, and how a Ukrainian fibre-optic FPV drone in 'waiting' (ambush) mode had been placed at the crew's former launch point before Russian troops on a quad bike shot it up. Countermeasures cited are camouflage, field engineering of positions, obstacles such as branches and nets across drone approach paths, and constantly changing take-off/landing sites and positions. The unit also trains continuously in a dedicated simulator room and in live flights, including on new antennas.
'Doc' now operates on the Druzhkivka direction; on one recent sortie series he reportedly destroyed a 122 mm D-30 howitzer and a depot holding drones, ammunition and provisions, and shot down seven 'Baba Yaga' heavy hexacopters, and he is said to have occasionally downed Ukrainian FPV drones in the air. The piece is a personnel profile with propaganda framing; the claimed kills are unverified, but it confirms the formation of an FPV battery within an artillery brigade's anti-tank battalion and the retraining of ATGM crews as drone operators.
Caveat: this is single-source reporting from Krasnaya Zvezda (Russian MoD daily, state media); the claims have not been independently verified.
Головна загроза прийде разом із туманами: «Перун» про плани росіян на Запоріжжі
2026-09-26SINGLE SOURCE
Dmytro 'Perun' Filatov, commander of Ukraine's 1st Separate Assault Regiment, told Suspilne that Russian forces on the Zaporizhzhia axis have reduced the number of assaults, which he attributes to Russia choosing another direction for its main effort, apparently Dobropillia. Infiltration attempts still happen daily, mostly by groups of two or three infantrymen, countered by strike-and-search actions along Ukrainian supply routes. According to Filatov, Russian forces fire little artillery at his unit because Ukrainian counter-battery fire quickly destroys guns after they fire; there is therefore no classic artillery preparation before infantry actions, and Russian fire is concentrated on drones. Russian crews hide their guns with revetments, camouflage nets and dug-in positions, and limit their firing arc so they do not have to cut trees in tree lines.
Filatov named the former Kakhovka reservoir bed as a particular threat: dense vegetation, high humidity and long autumn and winter fogs make it hard to observe and control. He says Russian troops used these conditions last year to enter the village of Prymorske, which Ukrainian forces now fully hold again, and expects the area to become very hard to hold with current forces as the weather worsens. He does not expect a full-scale offensive on Zaporizhzhia, but the same infiltration tactics under more favourable conditions, requiring no extra units. He identified the Russian force in the sector as the 'Dnepr' grouping, which includes airborne (VDV) troops.
Caveat: this is single-source reporting from ArmyInform, the news agency of the Ukrainian Ministry of Defence. The claims about Russian plans have not been independently verified.
В КНДР испытали новый управляемый снаряд 240-мм РСЗО
2026-09-24SINGLE SOURCEMILBLOGGER
Citing North Korea's state news agency KCNA, the Russian milblogger channel WarGonzo reports that the DPRK has tested a guided rocket for an upgraded 240mm multiple rocket launcher. The channel says the rocket has a self-guided precision system. It gives the range as 100 km on a ballistic trajectory and up to 115 km on a combined glide trajectory. WarGonzo compares the munition to the precision rockets fired by the US HIMARS.
The post repeats KCNA's claim that the test confirmed the rocket's accuracy and its superiority over most foreign equivalents. The matter is relevant to Russia because North Korean 240mm MLRS systems have been supplied to Russia. If a guided round with a range of more than 100 km reached Russian units, it would add a longer-range precision option to that system. The post gives no information on whether the new round will be exported or when it will enter service.
Caveat: this is single-source reporting from a personal, editorial Telegram channel. It does not represent a position of the Russian Ministry of Defence, and milbloggers may contradict each other and the MoD. The performance figures are North Korean state-media claims passed on without independent verification.
Ukrainian drone reportedly kills commander of Russia's 8th Artillery Regiment, a 2014 defector, in Kherson region
2026-09-23
Colonel Aleksandr Isaev, commander of the Russian 8th Artillery Regiment, was killed on 19 September 2026 in Kherson region, according to the Ukrainian project "Book of Executioners of the Ukrainian People". It says he was hit by a drone of the Ukrainian Defence Forces. Most reports describe an FPV drone, and Militarnyi says it was reportedly a Bulava. According to the same Ukrainian reporting, the regiment belongs to the 22nd Army Corps of the Black Sea Fleet's coastal forces. It was operating on the coastal (Dnipro river) axis as part of Russia's "Dnepr" group of forces.
The Ukrainian account says Isaev was born in Mykolaiv and served in the Ukrainian Navy from 1992. In 2014 he was chief of staff and first deputy commander of the Ukrainian Navy's 406th Separate Coastal Artillery Brigade in Crimea, and he defected to Russia during the annexation. The account says he was discharged to the reserve in 2015, returned to service in October 2022 and was appointed regiment commander with the rank of colonel in September 2024.
The claim comes only from Ukrainian sources. At the time of writing, no Russian official source, obituary or independent imagery confirming Isaev's death had been found. The case fits the pattern of drones being used against command personnel close to the Dnipro front line.
Latvia Chooses Czech Morana Over Swedish Archer Self-Propelled Howitzer
2026-09-18
Latvia's Cabinet of Ministers has decided to procure approximately 18 Morana 155mm wheeled self-propelled howitzers from Czech manufacturer Excalibur Army, reversing its earlier plan to acquire Sweden's Archer system from BAE Systems Bofors. The selection process started with market research in May 2024, and Latvia had signed a letter of intent with Sweden in June 2025 for 18 Archer units. Further assessment found that the high cost and long delivery timelines of the Swedish system did not align with available resources and defense plans. Latvia's Ministry of Defence cited cost, delivery timelines, operational capabilities, and the level of involvement of the local defense industry as the deciding factors.
The Morana is the latest generation of Czech wheeled self-propelled artillery, following the earlier Dita and Dana models. It is built on a modified four-axle Tatra 815-7 (8x8) chassis with an armored crew cabin, mounting a fully automated 155mm/52-caliber turret. The system is operated by a crew of three, carries 45 rounds in the turret, and has a maximum range exceeding 40 kilometers depending on ammunition type. No specific contract value or delivery timeline was disclosed alongside the announcement.
The decision fits a broader pattern of artillery modernization along NATO's eastern flank, where states are increasingly favoring faster delivery and lower cost over established Western European suppliers. For a tracker focused on Russian military developments, this is chiefly relevant as an indicator of how Baltic states are strengthening conventional fire support in response to the Russian threat, though it remains a procurement decision rather than a direct battlefield development.
Ukrainian Drone Takes Out Rare North Korean Type-75 Rocket Launcher
2026-09-11SINGLE SOURCE
Ukraine's 40th Brigade destroyed a North Korean-supplied Type-75 rocket launcher with a strike drone, according to Defense Express, which cites video released by the brigade. The Type-75 is a 107mm, 12-tube multiple rocket launcher — a North Korean copy of the Chinese Type 63, itself derived from the Soviet BM-14 design of the 1960s. Each unguided rocket weighs about 18 kg with roughly 1.5 kg of explosive in the warhead, effective against area targets but entirely dependent on staying concealed to survive on a battlefield saturated with reconnaissance drones.
The system is described as "rare" because, despite Russia's growing reliance on foreign-supplied equipment, North Korean artillery systems still appear infrequently in documented frontline footage. This is not the first confirmed Type-75 kill — Defense Express and other outlets reported similar incidents dating back to mid-2025 — but each new sighting reconfirms that this dated North Korean hardware is actively deployed at the front.
The find fits a longer-running pattern of North Korean support to Russia: beyond these rocket systems, Pyongyang has previously supplied millions of artillery shells, deployed KN-23-type ballistic missiles against Ukrainian targets, and since late 2024 has sent its own troops to reinforce Russian forces in the Kursk region. Note: this report rests on a single Ukrainian source (Defense Express) and video evidence supplied by the Ukrainian side; it is not independently verified.
Russia markets 'combat-proven' weapons for export at Egypt's El Alamein Airshow, claims new Su-57E deals
2026-09-07
Ahead of the El Alamein International Airshow (EIA 2026, Egypt, 8–10 September), Russia's state arms exporter Rosoboronexport and the United Aircraft Corporation (UAC) mounted a sales push built around systems Moscow calls "combat-proven" in Ukraine. Rosoboronexport CEO Alexander Mikheyev said on 7 September that Russia has signed new export contracts for the Su-57E, the export version of its fifth-generation fighter, with deliveries starting in 2026; he named no buyers and disclosed no values. UAC planned a Su-57E flight demonstration and the public debut of two new air-launched weapons: the S-71M "Monokhrom" (a jet-powered loitering munition with autonomous target recognition) and the S-71K "Kovyor" (a low-observable guided munition for fixed targets). The exhibit also features the modernised Yak-130M trainer/light-attack aircraft and ZALA's Lancet-E loitering munition plus Kub and Skat-350M UAVs. On 8 September, Rostec also presented its "Citadel" (Tsitadel) counter-drone gun abroad for the first time: an anti-aircraft system with 30-mm automatic cannons, a high degree of automation from detection to destruction, and programmable shells set to detonate at a chosen point along their trajectory so that, per Rostec, significantly fewer rounds are needed than with conventional ammunition. Rostec says it expects "significant interest" from foreign partners; no radar, detection range, effective altitude or mobility figures were given.
The claims are explicitly promotional. Mikheyev asserted the Su-57 "has proven its superiority in actual combat" against an adversary equipped with modern air defence and electronic warfare, and that acquiring it would give a partner air force "a long-term strategic advantage in the region" — without offering combat data. He said the Yak-130M "can meet the combat aviation needs of most sub-Saharan African countries," and that the Lancet-E had "demonstrated excellent performance in real-world conditions." UAC director general Vadim Badekha called North Africa an important market.
Caveat: Defence Blog is the only independent source here. The export-deal figures, the "combat-proven" framing and the claimed buyer interest are unverified statements by Russian state media (TASS, Topwar) made for export-marketing purposes — no buyers, quantities or contract values have been confirmed, and the combat-performance claims are unsupported by evidence. Defence Blog notes Russia has largely kept the Su-57 out of contested airspace over Ukraine, using it mainly for standoff cruise-missile launches, following setbacks including a June 2024 Ukrainian drone strike on a Su-57 on the ground at Akhtubinsk and an October 2024 friendly-fire episode in which a Su-57 shot down Russia's own S-70 Okhotnik drone.
Russian artillery brigades stand up organic counter-battery UAV subunits, Izvestia reports
2026-09-04SINGLE SOURCE
The pro-military Russian outlet Topwar (author Kirill Ryabov), on 7 September 2026, relays a 4 September 2026 Izvestia report citing unnamed sources that artillery brigades of the Russian Ground Forces have stood up their own organic UAV subunits dedicated to counter-battery warfare (RU: “подразделения БПЛА контрбатарейной борьбы”). The subunits are said to be already operational at the front. Each fields two drone types — a long-endurance reconnaissance/loitering type for surveillance and target detection, and a strike type (loitering munition) able to engage located targets itself — supplemented by ground-based radio-technical reconnaissance (RTR) and electronic-warfare systems to locate and jam enemy command and communication links.
Primary targets are enemy tube and rocket artillery, counter-battery radars and EW complexes; a secondary task is detecting and suppressing enemy UAVs, especially FPV and artillery-spotting drones. The subunit passes target designation directly to the brigade's own artillery. The stated purpose is to compress the counter-battery cycle by removing the delays that arise when drone support has to be requested from outside units — decisive against “roving gun” tactics where a piece fires for seconds to a few minutes and then displaces. The article frames this as the latest step in a long arc: artillery–UAV cooperation became widespread after February 2022, with the Unmanned Systems Troops initiated by Defence Minister Belousov in December 2024 and declared structurally complete on 12 November 2025.
Izvestia names no specific drone models, no number of subunits formed, and does not say which brigades hold them, and there is no open information on any force-wide rollout. Single-source caveat: this rests on a single Russian source chain — Izvestia's anonymous sources, relayed by the pro-military outlet Topwar — and has not been independently confirmed by Western or Ukrainian reporting.
National Guard 'Spartan' brigade claims 3,800+ Russian targets hit in a month on the Pokrovsk axis
2026-09-03SINGLE SOURCE
SINGLE SOURCE — Ukrainian publication (Ministry of Defence). ArmyInform reports, citing the unit's own Facebook announcement, that the 3rd Operational Purpose Brigade 'Spartan' of the National Guard (named after Colonel Petro Bolbochan) destroyed or suppressed more than 3,800 enemy 'objects' during August on the Pokrovsk axis. The result is attributed to the combined work of the brigade's artillery, drone (UAV) and electronic-warfare (REB) units operating across the sector.
The article breaks the monthly tally down as follows: 2,313 Russian drones suppressed (by electronic warfare), 548 unmanned aircraft of various types shot down, 561 command posts, observation points and shelters destroyed, 331 Russian soldiers killed, 5 tanks, and 57 vehicles and motorcycles. It also lists artillery pieces and multiple-launch rocket systems, ammunition depots, telecommunications equipment, engineering vehicles and enemy electronic-warfare and reconnaissance systems among the targets. The great majority of the 3,800 figure is therefore counter-drone activity (EW suppression plus shoot-downs) rather than ground kills.
The headline frames the brigade's drone operators as 'burning out' the occupiers within a kill zone on the Pokrovsk axis, implying a layered reconnaissance-strike loop, but the body of the piece is a statistical roundup and contains no named quotes or detailed description of methods. Single Ukrainian Ministry of Defence-outlet source; the figures are the unit's own tally and have not been independently verified.
SINGLE SOURCE — Krasnaya Zvezda is the official newspaper of the Russian Ministry of Defence (a state outlet); every claim below reflects the Russian MoD position and is not independently verified.
Krasnaya Zvezda describes a strike on the Kupyansk axis by a crew operating the «Kub-4» loitering munition, run by an operator with the call sign «Grek» from the «Kontora» group of the 47th Tank Division, 1st Guards Tank Army, «Zapad» grouping; the system is fielded by the 375th Separate Anti-Tank Artillery Battalion. Reconnaissance drones reportedly spotted a group of Ukrainian infantry in a treeline firing on Russian assault troops; the coordinates were passed to the launch point, after which a fragmentation-HE munition is said to have hit the target.
The technical claims: the Kub-4 carries a payload of up to four kilograms to a range of nearly 50 kilometers, can loiter for extended periods over a designated grid square, and is said to have precision as its main advantage. Its employment differs from an ordinary strike drone: instead of a horizontal run-in the aircraft transitions into a steep vertical dive, which the paper claims complicates interception. The operator flies «blind» — no video feed from the Kub itself, only a digital map showing coordinates, azimuth, range, altitude and speed — while target imagery is supplied by a separate reconnaissance drone in an adjacent square. As prior results for this crew the paper lists light armored vehicles, disrupted unit rotations from strikes on columns, and destroyed drone control points; the Kub-4 is also said to be able to hit artillery at long range.
SINGLE SOURCE — Russian publication (Topwar.ru) reporting on a US weapons program. Castelion — founded in late 2022 by three former SpaceX employees — is developing the "Blackbeard" hypersonic missile under the Pentagon's RCCTO, intended for ground launch (e.g. HIMARS) and integration on the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet.
Cited: a $1B Series C round (Aug. 2026: $800M equity + $250M credit line), ~$13B valuation; a $25M 2026 Army budget line for "Blackbeard Ground Launch"; ~$105M Navy funding for F/A-18 integration plus a $23.4M Navy contract (June 2026) for 50 pre-production missiles. Goal: 500+ missiles/year after successful testing, rising to 12,000+ over five years pending Congressional approval, with a new plant ("Project Ranger") in Sandoval County, New Mexico (>$100M, ~300 jobs).
Technical: two-stage boost-glide design, X-shaped tail fins, hypersonic glide vehicle second stage; estimated speed >Mach 5, estimated range ~800 km, estimated unconfirmed warhead ~43 kg; early F/A-18E/F fielding cited for 2027. CAVEAT: Russian publication on US weapons development, apparently based on untraced Western reporting; speed/range/payload explicitly described as estimates — treat as unconfirmed claim, extra caution warranted as this is a Russian rendering of a US program.
Ukrainian Border Guards Destroy Russian Giatsint-B Howitzer with FPV Drones
2026-08-19SINGLE SOURCE
SINGLE SOURCE — Defense Express (Ukrainian defense media). According to Defense Express, drone operators from the Apex unit, part of the Forpost Border Guard Brigade, destroyed a Russian 2A36 Giatsint-B howitzer on the South Slobozhanske axis on 19 August. The gun was first detected while providing fire support to Russian troops in the area, after which the operators conducted a precision strike using FPV drones. Per the source, the system was effectively reduced to scrap by the drone hits, and footage of the strike was released by Ukraine's State Border Guard Service.
The Giatsint-B (2A36) is a Soviet-designed, towed 152mm gun capable of engaging targets at significant range, belonging to an older generation of Russian field artillery that Russia continues to deploy alongside newer platforms for ground-support and fire missions. Being towed rather than self-propelled, it lacks integral armor protection, leaving it vulnerable to drone strikes once located.
The destruction fits a broader, recurring pattern in which Ukrainian units — including border guard formations such as Apex/Forpost — use relatively cheap FPV drones to knock out costly Russian artillery systems.
Russian Grad MLRS Pulled Back from Front Line Amid Ukrainian Drone Threat
2026-07-28SINGLE SOURCE
Ukrainian drone pressure is pushing Russian forces to reposition heavy artillery, including BM-21 Grad multiple rocket launchers, much further behind the front line. According to Hektor, chief sergeant of the interceptor UAV battery of Ukraine's 115th Brigade, in his sector Russian self-propelled artillery is now typically positioned 25-30 kilometers behind the line of contact, a standoff distance he attributes directly to the effectiveness of Ukrainian unmanned systems against exposed platforms.
Hektor said BM-21 Grad launchers specifically are now rarely employed in his sector because they are actively hunted by Ukraine's drone battalion. In their place, Russian forces rely primarily on the longer-range Msta-S 152mm self-propelled howitzer, occasionally supplemented by the Tornado MLRS.
This entry is based on a single Ukrainian-sourced analytical piece (Defense Express), built entirely on the account of one named Ukrainian drone-unit NCO describing one sector of the front, with no independent corroboration, loss figures, or production/replacement data — it should be read as an anecdotal snapshot, not a verified broader trend.
Azov Destroys Russia's New 'Sarma' MLRS in First Confirmed Strike, Moscow's Claimed HIMARS Counterpart
2026-07-28SINGLE SOURCE
Troops of Ukraine's 1st National Guard Corps (Azov) achieved the first confirmed strike on a Russian 'Sarma' multiple launch rocket system (MLRS) on 22 July, during the repulsion of a large-scale Russian mechanized assault on the Dobropillia axis in Donetsk region. Footage analyzed by Militarnyi shows a fixed-wing attack drone destroying the launcher after it had been deployed to support the assault; the vehicle's white-painted cab suggests an attempt to disguise it as a civilian truck.
The Sarma is a 300mm MLRS mounted on a KamAZ-63501 chassis, fitted with six launch tubes. Russia initially claimed a range of 20-120 km, later inflating this to 200 km, though analysts consider roughly 120 km — using 9M544 or 9M549 guided rockets — more credible. Russian sources market the system as a HIMARS equivalent, but analysts call the comparison highly questionable since the Sarma, unlike the American system, lacks multi-caliber capability.
The system is essentially a rebrand of the 9A52-4 Kama, an MLRS prototype that first appeared in 2007 and was originally marketed for export, attracting no foreign buyers. It was only re-unveiled for export in February 2026 at Saudi Arabia's World Defense Show. This strike is therefore not just the first confirmed destruction of the system, but effectively the first real-world evidence that it has actually entered Russian operational service. This report is based on a single Ukrainian source (Defense Express) and has not yet been independently corroborated.
Ukraine Destroys Msta-B, Giatsint-B and BM-21 Grad Systems, FPV Drone Cache Near Dobropillia
2026-07-27SINGLE SOURCE
According to Defense Express (22 July 2026), Ukraine's Phoenix border guard unit reportedly destroyed a cluster of Russian artillery and rocket systems on the Dobropillia axis in Donetsk Oblast: a 2A65 Msta-B 152mm self-propelled howitzer, a 2A36 Giatsint-B 152mm towed field gun, and a BM-21 Grad multiple rocket launcher — the latter reportedly engaged while on the move. This falls within the same sector where a separate, broader Russian offensive near Dobropillia was also reported this cycle (tracked in the verified stream).
In addition, Ukrainian drone operators reportedly located and struck a stockpile of Russian FPV drones being prepared for combat use, and the State Border Guard Service reported Russian personnel casualties in the area. The systems were characterized as high-value assets used by Russian forces to support offensive operations in the sector.
This item is based on a single Ukrainian source (Defense Express, citing the State Border Guard Service) and has not been independently confirmed. Numbers, precise locations and claimed results should be treated as an unverified Ukrainian claim.
Ukraine's 44th Artillery Brigade Claims Destruction of Three Russian Msta-B Howitzers, Strike on Troop Position
2026-07-22SINGLE SOURCE
According to a video release by Ukraine's 44th Separate Artillery Brigade, the unit claims to have destroyed three Russian 2A65 Msta-B 152mm towed howitzers and struck a Russian troop position during combat operations on the Huliaipole and Orikhiv axes in the Zaporizhzhia sector. The footage was reportedly released around 20 July 2026, per Defense Express.
Per the brigade's account, drone operators first identified the concealed Russian artillery positions and relayed precise targeting data to artillery crews, who then engaged the howitzers — a combined reconnaissance-strike method pairing drone spotting with indirect artillery fire, rather than a direct drone strike. The brigade further states that Russian forces in the area are relying heavily on artillery while massing personnel in preparation for further combat operations, which it says explains the reported strike on an assembled Russian troop position; no casualty figures for that strike are given, and the video itself is not embedded in available reporting.
This is a one-sided Ukrainian-sourced claim based solely on footage released by the brigade itself; there is no independent (e.g., Russian or third-party) confirmation of the destruction of the three howitzers or of the troop-position strike, so the information should be treated as single-source and unverified.