ATACMS strike shakes Luhansk: Ukrainian offensive intensifies

On June 7, 2024, the Russian-occupied city of Luhansk came under fire. Ukrainians attacked several locations used by the Russian army. ATACMS missiles fell on the town and surrounding areas. We explain what this weapon is.

Artem Lysogor, head of Luhansk Oblast authorities loyal to Kyiv, informed the videos show explosions near the barracks of the former Luhansk Higher Military Navigation School, where Russian invaders have already settled comfortably. The same area houses an airport, an aircraft repair plant, and a road leading to the border with Russia. He added that a nearby oil depot was also hit.

Artem Lysogor also noted that local observers' information indicates there may have been up to 20 explosions. Meanwhile, Russian occupation authorities claimed in a statement that air defence systems had shot down ATACMS missiles (Army Tactical Missile System). However, the series of explosions leaves no doubt that not all targets were neutralized. This isn’t the first time the ATACMS missiles used by Ukrainians have inflicted significant losses on the Russians.

ATACMS are solid-fuel ballistic missiles produced in the United States. It’s worth explaining that Ukrainians have been using them since last year, but only the M39 variant, which is older, has a range of up to 160 kilometres and uses inertial guidance. In 2024, the defending army started receiving newer variants of this weapon.

This involves the M39A1 variant, which allows for hitting targets at distances of up to 300 kilometres. Additionally, it also has satellite navigation, ensuring greater precision in attacks.

ATACMS is also a weapon with high destructive power. The warheads of these missiles contain hundreds of M74 bomblets. The older variant has 950 bomblets, while the newer one has around 300. Each bomblet weighs 600 grams and has a destructive range of several feet. They contain, among other things, an incendiary mix, so ATACMS attacks very often result in fires.

ATACMS pose a significant problem for the Russians mainly due to their destructive power. Recently, they have developed effective methods for jamming satellite navigation, but their actions prove effective primarily against missiles with lower destructive power, such as GLSDB or M982 Excalibur.