Posted on 02/04/2018 3:54:13 AM PST by ameribbean expat
A drone carrying a grenade infiltrated an ammunition dump in Ukraine, setting off an explosion that caused an astounding billion dollars worth of damage. The incident points to the growing use of drones in wartime, particularly off the shelf civilian products harnessed to conduct sabotage and other attacks.
Ukraine's domestic intelligence service, the SBU, believes that a drone carrying a Russian thermite hand grenade caused a series of titanic explosions at Balakliya, a military base in Eastern Ukraine. Amateur video of the incident posted on YouTube shows a raging fire spewing out of control artillery rockets, and an explosion and shockwave that sent civilians nearby reeling.
The drone is believed to have carried a ZMG-1 thermite grenade. Thermite, a combination of iron oxide (rust) and aluminum powder. The stuff burns extremely hot and easily could have gotten through wooden crates to detonate the munitions inside. The ammo dump is just 60 miles from the Russian/Ukrainian border, where fighting recently took place.
(Excerpt) Read more at popularmechanics.com ...
I suspect that no matter what really happened no one is going to admit that it was another accident caused by Ukrainian personnel who are poorly trained and careless. So, a Russian made drone and a single thermite grenade it is.
McCrazy sure is going to be unhappy that his ammo went up in smoke
All too easy. Recall the kid about a year ago that mounted a pistol on his drone. Drones and self-driving cars are all too likely going to be terrorist tools. A grenade seems easy to envision as it could be held in place by the pin mounted on a servo motor. Active to remove it and the grenade is armed and dropped, drone returns for reload. Be hard to top $1 billion of damage with one grenade.
Crowd pleasers.
Sounds like improper storage of munitions.
The power of asymmetric warfare.
JoMa
OUTSTANDING. Of course I knew about it earlier from my handlers, but it still is really cool to see it getting into the Western media.
(p.s., I’m a Russian troll because I support some of Putin’s policies)
Boy, I need one of those for my liberal British neighbor.
The Shadow had the equivalent of "flying bombs" aka "cruise missiles" - controlled from a mother plane.
Absent any hard evidence, my gut agrees with you.
They stole and sold in the black market arms trade,
destroyed the evidence.
“an explosion that caused an astounding billion dollars worth of damage”
Where did they get this ‘billion dollars’ worth of ammunition?
My ad blocker won’t let me see the article. This one does.
BLOWN SKY HIGH Incredible drone footage shows moment ammunition depot EXPLODES detonating hundreds of missiles forcing 20,000 people to flee
https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/3175716/drone-footage-ammunition-depot-explodes-missiles/
Wonder who’s drone it was.
All eggs + 1 basket = 0
Cool video
IMO for a single grenade to set it all off, the stuff must have been stacked outside all bunched up/piled up.
I am no weapons storage expert, but I kinda think this stuff should have been segregated in a series of well spaced dirt covered bunkers. In which case a simple grenade would likely set nothing off.
single thermite grenades were used to take out absolutely huge Guns during WW2. Stick on in the chamber of a 16” gun and it melts right through to the outside. Extremely hot. Drop one atop stacked munitions and it melts through many layers…the munitions going off sets the rest off. Sympathetic ignition/explosion.
I suspect that you are right. It is highly implausible that an event in which a billion dollars of ammo is blown up could be traced back to a single grenade. Not a single shred of that alleged drone or its grenade would be left.
Regardless, in my opinion, anything that sets back the Ukrainian warmongers with minimal loss of life is a good thing. Hopefully not too many people got hurt.
All I have to say is: Someone’s pissed.
This was A YEAR AGO.
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