Russia Deploys Advanced Smoke Screens to Evade Ukrainian Drones
A recent social media post has unveiled a video demonstrating a smoke screen deployed by Russian forces to shield their military equipment from Ukrainian FPV (First Person View) drones. This strategic move occurred near Belogolovka in the Luhansk region, as reported by the Ukrainian Front, a channel managed by OSINT (Open Source Intelligence) specialists. It's speculated that TDA-3 vehicles were utilized to generate this smoke screen, a tactic increasingly adopted by the Russians.
12:01 PM EDT, April 22, 2024
Smoke screens effectively hamper accurate attacks, particularly against FPV drones that typically carry small payloads. The Ukrainian Front highlighted the use of such screens, which was notably observed in the Luhansk region's Belogolovka area.
Russian smoke screens
Smoke utilization falls under "maskirovka," a Russian doctrine of operational camouflage. The TDA-3 vehicles, operational since 2016-2017, mark a significant advancement in this strategy, highlighting an improvement over earlier models like the TDA-2K. These vehicles, lauded for their efficiency, speed, and extensive concealment area, represent a modern take on battlefield deception.
Employing unique aerosols, TDA-3 vehicles can conceal military assets from visual and radar detection. Each unit, weighing approximately 35,274 pounds, is installed on a KamAZ-5350 6x6 truck chassis and comprises various modules, including tanks for the smoke mixture and a mixer.
TopWar reports that these vehicles are equipped with meteorological equipment and can be readied for action within about 5 minutes. As for operation, they consume powdered ingredients at a rate of 28.66 pounds per minute, making it possible for a smoke screen to persist anywhere from 110 minutes to 6 hours based on the mixture flow rate.
