The Armed Forces of Ukraine Hit Russian Unmanned Mining System

8 April, 2024 Russian ground-based unmanned mining system. Spring 2024. Ukraine.

Frame from the Telegram channel @russianocontext video The Russian military has begun using ground-based unmanned mining systems. The Ukrainian military discovered such a system due to drone reconnaissance.

The Russians installed nine kits of field mines on the unmanned ground vehicle. The kit consists of a primitive launcher, fuze, and cable reels. In the breech part of the launcher, contacts for the electrical launch system are provided.

When the cassette is connected to the unit, the contacts of the cassette and the unit are short-circuited. When an electric pulse is applied from a fuze or any other current source, the powder charge in the cassette ignites and ejects the mines.

The cassette fires anti-personnel mines that create a minefield in front of defensive positions. A minefield of any length can be installed sequentially, moving 8-10 meters after each launch.

The principle of operation of the PKM-1 (portable mining kit is a means of remote installation of minefields)

The danger of this remotely operated mining system lies in its simplicity: mines can be easily and suddenly installed by the enemy in the right place and at the right time. However, the Ukrainian military of the 44th Mechanized Brigade managed to destroy the system with FPV drones.

Russian ground-based unmanned mining system.

Spring 2024. Ukraine. Frame from the Telegram channel @russianocontext video

As previously reported, soldiers of the 63rd Mechanized Brigade recently demonstrated the combat use of a remotely operated mining system.

Also, in late March, Militarnyi reported that soldiers of the 47th Mechanized Brigade showed a video of them destroying Russian unmanned combat ground vehicles in the Avdiivka sector.