Ukrainians had crazy idea. They're massacring Russians with the car
The Ukrainian Front profile on platform X (formerly Twitter) published a recording of an interesting vehicle used by Ukrainians on the front line. Soldiers decided to install the Siwalka VM-8 launcher on a pickup truck.
5:16 PM EDT, October 6, 2023
The war in Ukraine has shown that ingenuity often counts on the frontline. This is evidenced by numerous modifications of military machines, as a result of which we can often admire so-called Frankensteins - various hybrids of two or more vehicles, which combined together are supposed to constitute a valuable weapon.
Both sides of the conflict are responsible for the production of military hybrids. Defenders have recently showcased the "Werewolf", which is an upgrade of the reconnaissance-patrol BRDM-2. At the beginning of the year, we also observed work on the "Terminator" – a combination of the T-62 tank with a BMP-2 turret. Russians, on the other hand, have already used a hybrid of the MT-LB carrier with a naval artillery system on the front line.
This time the "homemade" machine concerns the combination of Siwalka VM-8 launcher with a pickup truck - most likely it's a sixth-generation Toyota Hilux (prod. 1997-2005). The recording published by Ukrainian Front is not the only one confirming the use of this construction. This suggests that the machine is effective in combat with the Russian army.
Rocket launcher on the car
The Siwalka VM-8 is essentially a rocket launcher that can attack with 16 missiles at once. It uses S-8 rockets of 80 mm caliber, which are typically launched from military aircraft or helicopters. However, Ukrainians have decided to equip this weapon on a civilian pickup truck.
The S-8 are rockets of a larger caliber compared to their smaller counterpart, the S-5. The "Eights" are characterized by a range of around 2.5 miles, and their weight does not exceed 34.2 lbs.
What's particularly relevant in the context of the VM-8's utility is the fact that it can fire S-8 rockets with different warheads. The most commonly used are fragmentation high-explosive types. There are also thermobaric S-8DF warheads as well as anti-tank S-8T ones with a tandem shaped charge head, which can easily burn through reactive armor.
Virtual Poland's journalist Przemysław Juraszek explained earlier that accurate shooting from a pickup truck is, however, difficult to carry out. This is due to the design of the car, which compared to an airplane or helicopter is less rigid. For this reason, the scatter of a volley of bullets may not hit the exactly planned place by the operators. However, one cannot deny this type of construction its extraordinary mobility.
