The Ukrainian Ministry of Defence has shared a striking video showing an FPV drone destroying a Russian tank in a massive fireball.

The footage, shared on the ministry’s X account, was credited to the 46th Airmobile Brigade.

“Our drones will either find a way or make one,” the post read, showcasing the drone flying under the protective cage of the Russian tank before detonating and causing a significant explosion.

Using a live video feed from the drone’s camera, an operator guides it to the tank’s weak points – typically an open hatch, the engine, or ammunition stored in the turret. Once in position, the drone releases its payload, resulting in a violent explosion that sends large flames billowing into the sky. The tank shakes violently, bursts into pieces, and propels shrapnel and debris in all directions, leaving behind just a few burnt-out remnants of the Russian machinery.

The tank targeted in this operation is believed to be one of the so-called ‘turtle tanks,’ equipped with welded metal cages over their turrets in an attempt to protect them. The assault took place in the Donetsk region, where Russian forces have recently improved their battlefield positions.

This victory was achieved with a relatively small investment in an FPV drone, costing only a few hundred pounds, contrasting with the significant financial resources Russia expends on its tanks. These drones, often manufactured for up to £500 by volunteers, have become one of Ukraine’s most effective weapons in the war, serving roles from reconnaissance to direct attacks.

George Allison
George has a degree in Cyber Security from Glasgow Caledonian University and has a keen interest in naval and cyber security matters and has appeared on national radio and television to discuss current events. George is on Twitter at @geoallison

20 COMMENTS

  1. Aah this reflects a comment I made on the Crawford thread, Ukraine is adapting to the ‘turtle’ tanks aiming for the turret ring underneath the cover and setting off the ammo. The skill is amazing.

  2. Can someone answer the Twitter (X) guys comment for me? (im not on it). What are they hitting this tank with? The article says a £500 FPV drone but what is the warhead? Also the article says that the drone released the payload but the first footage is clearly from whatever hit the tank. Can a £500 drone carry a paveway or brimstone or whatever caused that level of destruction? It immediately exploded catastrophically….theres only a certain kind of munition that can do that surely? The video just doesn’t look right to me.

    • There are a large number of such videos on the web. As Dragonwight mentioned, Funker530 shows a few but many more are, as they say ‘out there’, many from various angles of the same strike. The explosions vary in scale. I believe the war heads are hollow charge. The tank design does the rest.

      This rather supports my view that the tank like other war fighting technology may have had its day, if only on cost grounds: 2-2.5 million USD against 500 USD (and falling).

      • It does specifically seem to be an issue with Russian designed tanks…completely self destructing and killing the crew has been something that has been seen for a very long time..Arab Israeli conflicts have seen it, both iraq wars and a few other times Russian tanks have gone into combat…if the fighting compartment of a Russian tank is penetrated it seems to lead to the loss of the tank and crew.

        • You are making an interesting comparison Graham. I think one has to look at the effects not the delivery system. Certainly any carrier will have to be closely guarded and not just from submarines. It is this cost – cost of operation as against delivering an objective – that is easily overlooked ( the ‘four operatives in the right place ‘ argument). Is there a better or emerging way to achieve one’s specific goals? That is the question. We are living in a time of bounding advances in technology, even compared to the beginning of this present century.

          About forty years ago some poor soul wrote a dissertation entitled ‘Is the Red Army Obsolete?’ (for being essentially a huge assembly of armour). He was hauled over the coals – career ending I should think – and the arguments were ‘buried’. Not looking such a silly idea now I suggest.

          • I am just a bit frustrated that people are predicting the demise of the tank just because there is a new counter system (and it happens to be cheap) – the attack drone.

            Some have predicted the demise of the tank for 40 or 50 years – to every counter there is a counter, be it offensive or defensive technology or better TTP. No-one seems to want to look at naval or air systems in the same way. It is just the tank that is singled out. If the tank really were obsolete why is no signficant tank-owning nation phasing it out? Instead they are investing in upgrades and/or new tanks.

            If there is a better, faster, cheaper way to do what the tank can do, then it can gracefully hand over to the Young Pretender.

    • Quite often the drone is carrying an RPG warhead with the nosecone pointing forward, the drone simply flies into the tank.

    • Hi BigH,

      I have seen reports on the BBC from the front line about a drone team called the Peaky Blinders (they are fans of the show and some of them even wear camo flat caps..!). The report is still on the BBC website Ukraine War page with a picture of the drones they use.

      There was an accompanying report on BBC1 showing them preparing a drone with an RPG warhead. They just use cable ties to attach the ‘warhead’ to the drone..! Some of the drones are fitted with a release mechanism – these are manufactured in Ukraine I think. The BBC showed a Ukrainian drone team (may have been the Peaky Blinders) hunting Russian troops moving along a communication route on the late news. They found 3 soldiers who heard the drone and ran. One was killed, one wounded and one got away, if I remember rightly. The drone had a release mechanism and a camera so the whole engagement was videoed.

      For a Heath Robinson weapon system these things are scarily effective.

      Cheers CR

  3. Russia’s losses can’t be all faked. A return to a war of movement following a break through, would increase their losses very significantly and there is no sensible answer to countering this new form of ‘video game warfare’. The ‘Turtle’ tank, Russia’s improvised solution, is not just peculiar, it’s inadequate. Better and more experienced minds will have to resolve the problems now facing ‘armoured’ warfare and quickly.

      • No.
        WW2 Tank destroyers had good external visibilty. These don’t.

        Also plenty of WW2 tank destroyers had turrets that rotated, eg:
        M10
        M36
        M18
        Achillies
        Firefly
        Challenger (not the current one)
        M3 MGC
        M6 MGC

        There’s a habit of conflating “Tank Destroyers” in General with German “Assault guns” which *could* be Tank Destroyers, but the vast majority where in fact Infantry Support vehicles (over 10,000 Stug III’s where build, with another 2-3,000 StuG IV’s and StuH 42, by comparison no German Tank Destroyer got much past 2,000 built, and most designs didn’t even get close to 1,000)

  4. They want to know if Challenger 3 is any good. Give it to the Ukrainian army. It will get an honest test

    • The fact tanks and armoured vehicles are being lost in their thousands by Russia indicates a few things
      1) the lack of air superiority triggered this type of fighting
      Russia’s inability to gain and maintain air superiority is damning
      2) All armoured vehicles now entering a drone infested combat zone must have an APS. This is a key requirement for the British army and the MOD must get their act together and sort this out.
      3) attached air defence units. Ideally a radar guided guns or automatic turret weapon system with HMG or canon for drone defences are vital.
      3) GBADs need serious investment in the UK and it’s armed forces
      4) anti drone ECM/ECCM needs sorting out and quickly.
      5) The Ukrainian army have chosen to equip lots of their troops with defensive 12 bore shotguns for defence against suicide drones.
      Fitting the SA80s carried by British troops with an underslung 12 bore would seem like a good idea.
      Drones have revolutionised warfare in Ukraine…but they are defeatable.

      • To answer some of your comments.
        1. I still find it hard to believe that Russia does not have air superiority at least over the battlefield. Due to NATO’s aircraft, they invested heavily in GBAD and SHORAD. But seemed to have forgotten about SEAD/DEAD when faced by an opposition who have similar capabilities. As their Kh-31P/PM anti-radiation missile is quite frankly rubbish. But the Pantsir, Tor and S400 have all been found wanting.
        2. APS is definitely part of the solution. But its sensors and effectors must be able to detect, track and engage targets flying directly above the vehicle. But also have an extended engagement range. Forcing the drone operator to drop their weapons from a much higher altitude. Thereby having a greater chance of missing the target.
        3. Everybody in NATO believed SPAAG was a relic of the Cold War. But today it is an essential and cost effective tool in dealing with suicide drones like the Iranian made Shahed. Then Ukraine were given Gepard, which has definitely proven its worth. It is something the UK needs to revisit. We have a great weapon system in the CTAS40. We just need to exploit it further. Perhaps a Boxer, Starstreak and CTAS40 combination.
        4. Anti-drone electronic countermeasures is one area that the UK is striding ahead with. This is a further development of the communications jammers we fitted to vehicles in Afghan that targeted mobile phones etc.
        5. Another area where we are perhaps in the lead, is giving infantry predictive optics with the Sharpshooter SMASH sighting system. Which can be fitted to an individual weapon such as the L85, or mounted to a GPMG. This enables the shooter to take out small FPV types of drone. Though it doesn’t help in actually detecting them at distance. Which is I’m sure a priority to sort out.

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