RT reported on December 23 that the Russian Defense Ministry announced that it had successfully intercepted an armored fighting vehicle, believed to be a Stryker model provided by the US, using an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV).
On the same day, the Russian military released a video of the fighting, saying the incident took place in the Kharkov region of Ukraine, but did not disclose the exact location.
According to the Russian military reconnaissance team, the suicide UAV (kamikaze) was deployed immediately after detecting a strange vehicle moving in the area.
RT believes that the type of UAV used by Russia in the mission on December 23 could be a quadcopter (a drone with 4 propellers). Although it has limited range and flight time, with its high flexibility, quadcopters are very suitable for suicide missions.
Russia has developed and used a variety of UAVs in military operations, including reconnaissance and attack UAVs. UAVs such as the Orlan-10 and Forpost-R are primarily used for intelligence gathering, battlefield surveillance, and providing continuous information to ground forces. They can fly continuously for more than 15 hours with a range of 100 km to 400 km.
Russia also uses attack UAVs such as the Lancet-3 or KUB-BLA. These UAVs are designed to carry out kamikaze attacks, destroying targets such as armored vehicles and military facilities. Suicide UAVs typically have a range of 30 km to 100 km and have been deployed in operations in Ukraine.
The video, shot by the UAV itself, shows that the target of the attack was the roof of the vehicle, a relatively weak part. The Russian Defense Ministry said the impact was strong enough to destroy the Stryker armored fighting vehicle.
According to multiple reports from Russia, the US has sent about 400 Stryker armored fighting vehicles (8 wheels, 18 tons, capable of carrying 11 people) to Ukraine.
Strykers were frequently used by the Ukrainian military in its campaign to push Russian troops out of the Kursk region in August 2024. Ukrainian officials said the goal of the campaign was to disperse Russian forces and occupy some areas to support future peace talks.
