Russians lose second Plastun-SN off‑roader in Luhansk region
7:06 AM EDT, June 26, 2024
Since October of last year, the Russian Federation has included Plastun-SN off-road vehicles, introduced to compensate for the shortage of armored personnel carriers. Until recently, only one confirmed destruction of such a vehicle had been reported. Now, the Russians have recorded the second loss of a Plastun since the beginning of the war.
In October 2023, the first 14 Plastun-SN units were introduced into the Russian army. Shortly after that, the military was reinforced with additional units, bringing the total to 50. The impact of these specific off-road vehicles with weak armor was quickly felt. By November 2023, the first photo documenting the destruction of this new Russian equipment surfaced online.
For a long time, no new reports related to the Plastun-SN existed. That has changed now. The Ukrainian agency Unian reports that another Russian off-road vehicle was recently destroyed in the Luhansk region. This marks the second documented case of its kind.
Russians lose a rare vehicle. It's a "field death capsule"
Although the Plastun appeared on the front lines only last year, it has not become a popular vehicle in the Russian army, according to military analyst Oleksandr Kovalenko. "These vehicles do not have a hard roof; generally speaking, it is a field death capsule," he added.
The Plastun's low popularity may stem from its limited defensive capabilities. However, it's worth noting that similarly fragile constructions, such as Chinese golf carts and motorcycles, have been used regularly by the Russian Federation for some time.
The Plastun-SN was intended to partially compensate for the lack of armored personnel carriers in Russian units. Initially designed as evacuation vehicles, they deviate from contemporary front-line standards due to their lack of a hard roof.
The Plastun-SN's power unit is also noteworthy. It features a 1.6-liter gasoline engine from Lada, generating about 100 horsepower and accelerating the vehicle to a speed of 31 mph. The structure, which weighs nearly 9,000 pounds, does not help ensure mobility. However, the Plastun is designed to handle slopes with up to 30-degree inclinations. Depending on the variant, it can be equipped with an 82 mm mortar for combating enemy units.
