Drone-Targeted Cluster Munitions Stop Russian Attacks In Zaporizhzhia Oblast

Picture from drone about to strike Russian troop concentration. 

The Russian army's approach to operational security remains a work in progress. JL

Militarnyi reports:

Ukrainian artillery targeted a concentration of Russian forces in the Zaporizhzhia region using cluster munitions. Aerial reconnaissance from the 108th Brigade observed a massive Russian redeployment. This information enabled precise strikes with HIMARS rocket system and 155mm artillery rounds, including HE-FRAG and cluster munitions. 72 bomblets are placed in the cartridge of the M864 projectile. These are 48 M42 and 24 larger M46 dual-purpose anti-materiel/anti-personnel submunitions. During detonation, bomblets of both types scatter debris within a radius of several meters. The fragmentation is effective within a radius of 50 meters from the point of explosion of the submunition.

Ukrainian artillery targeted a concentration of Russian forces in the Zaporizhzhia region using cluster munitions.

Aerial reconnaissance from the SkyForce unit of the 108th Brigade observed and recorded the artillery strikes.

Recently, aerial reconnaissance detected a massive enemy redeployment involving two GAZelle trucks and about 40 invaders.

 

This information enabled precise strikes with HIMARS rocket system and 155mm artillery rounds, including HE-FRAG and cluster munitions.

“It resulted in a direct hit to one of the trucks and up to 10 confirmed wounded and killed among the invaders’ personnel,” the military said.

 

After the strikes, the Russian military tried to evacuate some of the wounded, who were loaded into vehicles.

Evacuation of wounded invaders in the Zaporizhzhia region. October, 2024. Ukraine. Frame from the video of the 108th Territorial Defense Brigade

The invaders’ movements and attacks were recorded by reconnaissance drones of the SkyForce unit.

 

According to OSINT analysts from the CyberBoroshno group, the Russian position was hit near the village of Ivan Franko in the Zaporizhzhia region.

The location of the defeat of the invaders on the map by CyberBoroshno

The released video shows that the artillery used American 155 mm M864 and M483A1 shells, which have submunitions.

 

72 bomblets are placed in the cartridge of the M864 projectile. These are 48 M42 and 24 larger M46 dual-purpose anti-materiel/anti-personnel submunitions. During detonation, bomblets of both types scatter debris within a radius of several meters.

M864 and M483A1 cluster shells of the Ukrainian military. Summer 2023. Ukraine. Photo credits: War Noir

The M483A1 has M42 submunitions in the amount of 64 units, and M46 in the amount of 24 units. Each of the M42/M46 submunitions has a killing area of 10 square meters. However, the fragmentation is effective within a radius of 50 meters from the point of explosion of the submunition.

When the submunitions disperse in a circle and explode, they create a killing area and a fragmentation effect. Therefore, the impact zone of the cluster projectile looks like a circle.