Frag Out! Magazine
Issue link: https://fragout.uberflip.com/i/1497523
Deadly Birds That reality also includes the frontline. I don't know how this looks on the Russian side, probably similar - the Ukrainian side may be divided into three zones. The first one is the frontline fortifications - simplifying that, this is a line of trenches. The third line, several kilometers behind, is taken by the artillery. Here we are referring to positions that are constantly shifting, where fixed position warfare is going on. Drones and artillery radars dramatically increase the risk of detection and attract counter-battery fires. They force the artillery assets to be mobile, and that applies to both self- propelled systems, as well as towed guns. Between these two, the drone operators have their space arranged (those who operate the small UAVs used to detect and destroy the Russian elements). Here we are speaking of direct engagements, using explosive charges carried by the UAVs, and indirect directing of artillery fires. I was at one of such centers near Bakhmut. The exact location cannot be listed, for reasons that remain obvious. It is a solidly camouflaged base, partially located underground. Its brain comes in a form of a room where computers gather data from the drone cameras, with that data being displayed on two big, and several smaller screens. Storage and social facilities constitute the remainder of the base. The center manages efforts undertaken by several drone operators. The main goal is not to create redundancies between the drone operators working on the frontline. The whole system is networked thanks to the SpaceX Starlink satellites. Reconnaissance drones sweep the area in search of valuable targets - infantry gathering points, fighting vehicles, and main battle tanks. Smaller quadcopters are tasked with engaging small groups of soldiers. They are modified, so that they are capable of carrying 750 g fuel-air explosives. "Minus 22", Svetoslav, a drone operator I met in Bakhmut, wrote a few days ago, posting info on social media. He added: No, I'm not referring to the weather... - We can eliminate up to 40 Russians a day - Svetoslav said, not referring to that act as „killing". He was also demonstrating how small FAE charges are installed onto the drones. The FAE eliminates oxygen within the area covered by the explosion, generating serious www.fragoutmag.com