Commentary by Russian military journalist Boris Rozhin is in italics. Commentary elsewhere by Russian blogger Rybar.
On the use of the AGM-114 Hellfire against the positions of the Russian Armed Forces on the Kinburn Peninsula
On the Gray Zone channel, footage ( https://t.me/grey_zone/17970?single ) was published with fragments of an AGM-114C Hellfire anti-tank guided missile found somewhere on the Kinburn Peninsula. The rocket was launched from a Swedish-made Robotsystem 17 (RBS-17) ground launcher ( https://t.me/rybar/33534 ).
RBS-17 is an anti-ship system for combating surface targets. It is based on the AGM-114C Hellfire ATGM, adapted for use from a ground installation. The radius of effective action in this case is no more than ten kilometers.
Given the rather short distance, the launch was made somewhere in the vicinity of Ochakov and the nearby coast of the Dnieper-Bug Estuary. And the Hellfires themselves were delivered in one of the military aid packages from Norway.
Hellfires are equipped with a semi-active laser homing head and without additional illumination of the object with special devices, the missile will not reach the target.
What is the illumination in this area?
Back in August last year, the White House announced the transfer of ScanEagle drones for the needs of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Small and compact UAVs are equipped with a laser designator and are able to stay in the air for more than 20 hours.
Just a few weeks ago, ScanEagle complexes were put into service with the South Special Operations Special Forces Center (formerly 73 Marine Special Operations Centers), which conduct aerial reconnaissance in the area of ​​the Kinburn Peninsula almost daily.
Bayraktars with similar capabilities periodically fly near Ochakov. The command of the MTR center in Ochakovo also uses DRGs on small boats along the estuary and in the Yegorlytsky Bay. Therefore, the Armed Forces of Ukraine have no problems with target designation.
Given the active preparation of the Armed Forces of Ukraine for a counteroffensive ( https://t.me/rybar/44982 ), in the near future we should expect an increase in the number of sabotage attempts on the Kinburn Peninsula, including with the use of American ATGMs.
@rybar - zinc