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ADAPTIVE INDOMITABLE UKRAINE:Russian Glide Bombs Not in the News Much? Meet "Zushka"(ZU-23-2 Gun) [1]
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Date: 2025-02-16
Sometimes the solution to a seemingly intractable problem hides in plain sight. How many times have we here on DKos wished for Ukraine to come up with a solution to those infernal Russian FAB/KAB glide bombs that were wreaking such horrific destruction on Ukrainian defensive lines and even on some civilian locales?
Those new-fangled WWII era dumb bombs hurled at Ukrainians by Russian jet fighters(usually the work horse Su-24/25) from the safety of Russian territory quickly became a sickening daily feature all along the battle trace. At places like Avdiivka the Russians used these bombs to crumple and cave in Ukraine’s well-developed defensive hard points, taking the lives of a lot of brave Ukrainian defenders in the process. And these odious bombs were even used on Ukrainian civilians in places like Zaporizhzhia with a devastating loss of life. But what to do? How can Ukraine possibly stop these things?
Apparently the Ukrainians had developed a system for tracking the incoming FAB/KABs but how do you do it … effectively counter them without wasting already expensive and scare resources?:
Ukrainians learn to defend against guided bombs: how Soviet-era ZU-23-2 guns help counter Russian threat “We never had issues detecting KABs. The problem was with response time and the cost of use because the effective firing range of the guns is short, and missiles are expensive,” Sonashnyk explained. For this reason, the Defense Forces explored the possibility of shooting down guided aerial bombs with Soviet "Zushkas."
The proof of concept in Ukraine using the lowly but proven Zushka(“Little Lily” ) which has since WWII been one of the most ubiquitous anti aircraft guns in the world against the FAB/KABs began in July 2024. And once it proved effective against another Russian attack on January 6, 2025, “Little Lily” was officially on the hunt. It was not the first such tally but the case had been proven. Since then:
Ukrainian anti-aircraft gunners have been shooting down Russian long-range bombs using the ZU-23-2.
The Ukrainian news outlet Espreso Global(the quotes herein are from this article linked below) has a quite lengthy exposé on how this old museum piece anti-aircraft gun which is used around the world by many armies and insurgent groups(who mount them on pick up trucks under the general name of “technicals”) has at least for now been thrust into the breach by Ukraine to solve one of their most vexing military problems. It is a fascinating and informative read. In the end, as the article finally avers:
it is "not about the unique capabilities of this weapon, but about the unique skill of Ukrainian fighters and a dose of military luck." Sonashny notes that this involves a specific tactic and a Ukrainian solution that will gradually be scaled up.(emphasis mine) global.espreso.tv/...
ADAPTIVE INDOMITABLE UKRAINE … making way outta no way.
SLAVA UKRAINI !!
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[1] Url:
https://dailykos.com/stories/2025/2/16/2304076/-ADAPTIVE-INDOMITABLE-UKRAINE-Russian-Glide-Bombs-Not-in-the-News-Much-Meet-Zushka-ZU-23-2-Gun?pm_campaign=front_page&pm_source=trending&pm_medium=web
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