Ukraine update: Russia has their own 'Switchblade.' It just doesn't seem to work
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We’re currently putting together a look at some movements going on in the area of Kherson, as well as what’s going on in the east. In the meantime, here’s a smorgasbord of smaller items from around Ukraine this morning.
After Friday’s missile attack on a crowded railway station in Kramatorsk, in which at least 50 people, including 5 children, died, attempts to evacuate civilians from the area are continuing. But on Saturday, air raid sirens are again sounding in towns across eastern Ukraine and there is word that Russia is specifically targeting the rail system. There are multiple evacuation trains scheduled for today in Slavyansk, a large town directly adjacent to Kramatorsk. So far, those trains seem to be getting away safely, but this is certainly a tense situation.
The EU is continuing to fast track the admission of Ukraine. Though emergency measures have temporarily simplified processing of those seeking to cross the border into Poland and Slovakia, and reduced or eliminated tariffs on goods, actual EU membership should help ensure that the flow of goods and people between Ukraine and the rest of Europe has fewer restrictions. The economic ties should also make Europe more invested in the success of Ukraine in holding off the Russian invasion. At present, there is no “EU military” and no mutual promise of protection built into this membership. Both things have been proposed, but are unlikely to be in place within the next few years.
The first Switchblade systems, from U.S. manufacturer AeroVironment, are now in Ukraine, but so far there has been no announcement of their use. However, there is a reminder this morning that Russia also has a “loitering munition” or “kamikaze drone” in the form of the ZALA KYB-UAV.
And, of course, this being 2022, there is also a page from the manufacturer, Zala Aero Group, to explain and market this weapon. Though the fact that their video shows nothing but repeated footage of a single Zala apparently missing a target (but hey, it gets close) doesn’t seem all that big a sales pitch.
In theory, the ZALA drone falls in between the Switchblade 300, which targets either lightly armored vehicles or people, and the considerably larger Switchblade 600, which carries a much more significant explosive capable of taking out armored systems. With a 3Kg (6.6 lb.) warhead, the Zala should be able to deliver a decent punch, possibly taking down an armored target or a group of infantry.
There have been at least two previous claims that the Russian military had deployed a ZALA drone. However, the precision loitering munition seems to be a bit … imprecise. In one case, it was found on the ground unexploded, and this time it seems to have missed the target.
Yet another of those translations from @Dmitri of Russian soldiers placing calls to their families back home.
Soldier: “I didn’t tell you yesterday.”
Wife: “What?”
Soldier: “Our whole company is f*cking gone.”
The ZALA is far from the only Russian drone flying. They also have their equivalent of the Turkish Bayraktar in the form of the Kronshtadt Orion-E. (Yes, there’s a promotional video). How many of these drones have been used in Ukraine isn’t clear, but this one is done.