Russian forces face severe losses amid drone warfare in Ukraine
Russian military bloggers are heavily criticizing the commander of the 123rd Brigade, known by the nickname "Chestnut," who, with his assault near Bilohorivka, depleted four Russian battalions. Below are the details of the attack and what the Russians lost.
The assault criticized by Russian military bloggers occurred on November 2, 2024, near the direction of Sieversk. The Russians did capture some territory, but as bloggers acknowledge, the losses inflicted by the Ukrainian 10th Mountain Assault Brigade are very significant.
The Russians reportedly lost numerous armoured vehicles, tanks, and soldiers, most of whom were wounded. The Russians admit the attack was carried out without artillery support and that the wounded were not evacuated even five days after the assault.
This is what and how the Russians lost
The footage shows several hits on BTR-80/82A wheeled armoured personnel carriers, BMP-2 infantry fighting vehicles, and T-72/90 family tanks, some of which are in the "armoured barn" version. The Ukrainians used artillery, FPV drones, and "Baba Yaga" bombing drones to target the Russians.
There are also a few scenes showing the use of anti-tank guided missiles (ATGMs). Judging by the distinctive sight and the thermal camera view, these are the well-known Stugna-P ATGMs.
Drones as a key aspect of the war
Due to the nature of the war in Ukraine, where drones are common on both sides, there is essentially no longer the classic "fog of war" described by Carl von Clausewitz. In practice, both sides see what is happening at the front line and several kilometres deep in real time. This means that every major strike is detected early and can be shelled by artillery, for example, from a distance of 19 kilometres.
Then, drones entered the fray. FPV drones are essentially flying bombs, often with PG-7VL grenades capable of penetrating 50 centimetres of steel. On the other hand, "Baba Yaga" drones are often agricultural drones adapted to drop mortar shells or modified grenades. They are exceptionally effective against infantry soldiers or towed artillery positions but can also destroy armoured equipment with cumulative grenades.
Stugna-P ATGMs - the hallmark of Ukrainian anti-tank weapons still in action
Meanwhile, ATGMs are classic anti-tank weapons, and the Stugna-P is Ukraine's standard solution adopted for service in 2011. It was originally a Ukrainian-Belarusian project but eventually developed into a version based solely on Ukrainian components.
Structurally, it is an old-generation system compared to the Javelin or Akron-MP because it requires guiding the fired missile until it hits (guidance based on a laser beam). This, combined with the missile speed of about 200 metres per second, gives the target a distance of 5 kilometres and about 20 seconds to react. This is enough, for example, for a gunner to fire from a cannon at the location of the ATGM launcher.
To ensure the safety of operators, Stugna-P allows remote missile firing. This is achieved using a 50-metre cable that connects the launcher to a portable control panel equipped with a screen.
As for the warhead, it uses 130-millimetre calibre rockets or, less commonly, 152-millimetre ones. Both are equipped with a tandem cumulative warhead capable of penetrating reactive armour and, in the case of the smaller calibre, burning through at least 80 centimetres of armoured steel. This is enough to threaten even T-90 series tanks, not to mention older models.
