The war in Ukraine has become a clear pressure point between NATO and Moscow as Putin won’t stop his illegal invasion.
And, indeed, Putin’s losses continue to stack up over time to the point where many experts think he can’t conduct offensive operations anymore.
What happens next? We know that social media – time and time again, can act as a guide to what is happening on the ground and what can happen next. Below is such an example:
Drone Dropping Munitions Destroyed Russian Air Defense System in Ukraine- The social media account from Ukraine Weapons Tracker (@UAWeapons) reported back on March 3 that a “Russian 9A331M TLAR of the Tor-M2 air defense system and a very rare ISDM Zemledeliye remote mine-laying system were destroyed” in a drone attack.
This would mark the first confirmed loss of the ISDM, which was first deployed to Ukraine last year.
A Russian air-defense system had apparently failed to counter an unmanned aerial system (UAS), and it was apparently destroyed by the Ukrainian National Guard drone that dropped ordnance directly on the mobile platform.
Tor Out
Perhaps with some irony, the Tor-M2 short-range air defense missile system was developed to counter a range of targets including unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), guided missiles, cruise missiles, helicopters, and high-precision weapons that fly at very low to medium altitudes.
Each Tor-M2 SAM is equipped with two 9M334 modules, which contain four 9M331 SAM-guided missiles.
It can operate around the clock in all weather conditions, so it is entirely unclear how the Ukrainian drone was able to loiter above the system and carefully drop its ordnance undetected.
The full-automated surface-to-air missile (SAM) system is manufactured by Almaz-Antey’s Izhevsk Electromechanical Plant to also deliver effective air defense in jamming environments.
The Tor-M2 is purported to be able to engage a target within ten seconds while on the move and, within just eight seconds from a short stop.
It integrates Passive Electronically Scanned Array (PESA) radar that allows for faster and more precise beam control, and it can engage somewhere between four and ten targets simultaneously.
RIP ISDM
The ISDM (inzhenernoi sistem distantsionnogo minirovaniya or engineer system for remote mining) Zemledeliye mine laying system launcher was developed based on a Kamaz 6560 8×8 military truck chassis with a crew cabin at the front and two racks of twenty 122mm tube launchers able to launch anti-tank or anti-personnel mines.
According to Army Recognition, it is capable to launch mines to cover an area of several football fields within minutes.
The platform has a firing range from 5 to 15 km using 122mm caliber missiles with the warhead equipped with anti-tank or anti-personnel mines. The ISDM launcher is fitted with communications, fire-control, self-defense, and meteorological sensor systems.
Six smoke grenade launchers – three facing either side – form a part of the self-defense system.
It was first unveiled during the 2020 May Day Parade in Moscow and a preliminary batch is thought to have been delivered to the Engineer Troops earlier in the same year, Janes reported.
Russia has been deploying landmines throughout Ukraine, and there are concerns this could be a problem for years, possibly even decades to come.
As previously reported, New York-based Human Rights Watch warned last June that Russia was using landmines and other ordnance “that are causing civilian casualties and suffering, as well as disrupting food production.”
The group detailed seven types of antipersonnel mines that Russian forces in Ukraine are known to have used since the invasion began in late February of last year.
The destruction of one mine launcher won’t stop the Kremlin from deploying the mines, but it is still notable that one of Moscow’s most highly-touted platforms was so easily destroyed via a drone.
#Ukraine: A Russian 9A331M TLAR of the Tor-M2 air defense system and a very rare ISDM Zemledeliye remote mine-laying system were destroyed by the Ukrainian National Guard using drone-dropped munitions.
This marks the first confirmed loss of the ISDM Zemledeliye. pic.twitter.com/McsF7LTJb3
— ???????? Ukraine Weapons Tracker (@UAWeapons) March 3, 2023
Author Experience and Expertise:
A Senior Editor for 19FortyFive, Peter Suciu is a Michigan-based writer. He has contributed to more than four dozen magazines, newspapers, and websites with over 3,200 published pieces over a twenty-year career in journalism. He regularly writes about military hardware, firearms history, cybersecurity, politics, and international affairs. Peter is also a Contributing Writer for Forbes and Clearance Jobs. You can follow him on Twitter: @PeterSuciu.
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