MOSCOW REGION, RUSSIA – JUNE 25, 2019: A ZALA Lancet-3 attack drone developed by Kalashnikov Concern on display at the Army 2019 International Military Technical Forum at Patriot Park. Marina Lystseva/TASS
The Russian military has destroyed one of Ukraine’s MV-10 heavy remote-controlled mine-clearing vehicles in the Kharkiv direction.
The robotic vehicle was struck by a Lancet loitering munition right after it was deployed close to the settlement of Izyum. A video showing the strike was posted to social networks on May 28, although the vehicle was falsely identified in the footage as an American-made M1150 Assault Breacher Vehicle.
The MV-10, developed by the Croatian firm DOK-ING to neutralize all types of anti-personnel mines, anti-tank mines, and unexploded ordnance. The vehicle, which weighs just over 20 tons, measures 4.6 meters in length, 2.2 meters in width, and 2.1 meters in height. It is powered by a Caterpillar C18 engine with 766 horsepower.
The vehicle can be controlled by the operator from a distance of up to 3 kilometers, with a video control system for operations beyond 800 meters.
It is equipped with a dual working assembly consisting of a chain mechanism and a knife, enabling it to withstand the detonation of anti-tank mines and effectively clear up to 3,000 m² of surface per hour. It can penetrate the soil up to 60 cm, depending on the soil type, while being protected by HARDOX 400 steel plates resistant to explosions and gunfire.
Kiev forces operate some 17 MV-10s, all donated by the European Union. Most of these vehicles are active in the directions of Mykolaiv, Kherson, and Kharkiv.
Last year, it was reported that A3Tech-Ukraine would begin producing the mine-clearing vehicle under an agreement with DOK-ING.
This was the first documented Ukraina loss of a vehicle of this type. Despite receiving much support, Kiev forces are suffering from a shortage in engineering vehicles.
Lancet loitering munitions were responsible for the destruction or damage of some 60 Ukrainian engineering vehicles, according to lostarmour.info, a website that documents military losses based on visual evidence.
The Lancet was developed by the ZALA Aero Group, a subsidiary of Russia’s defense giant Kalashnikov Concern. The company produces two versions of the loitering munition, the Izdeliye-52 with an endurance of 30 minutes and a one-kilogram warhead and the larger Izdeliye-51 that has an endurance of 40 minutes and is armed with a warhead weighting three kilograms.
The loitering munition flies towards the designated area with a GLONASS-aided inertial navigation system. After arriving in the area, the operator utilizes an onboard electro-optical system via a two-way data-link to detect, track and lock on the target. A laser-ranging system then controls the detonation of the warhead.
Ukrainian attempts to stop Lancet loitering munitions with air defense fire, electronic warfare or countermeasures have so far been mostly unsuccessful.
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