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Russian troops are now training to use the state-of-the-art Yolka interceptor, and videos from the special military operation zone in Ukraine indicate that the system is being fielded on a wide scale.
The videos, showing Russian troops training on the use of the Yolka at a training group and actively using the system to take down Ukrainian drones along the border with Kharkiv and Sumy, surfaced online on February 20 and earlier in the week.
The Yolka is optically guided, and is said to utilize artificial intelligence to detect and track the intended aerial target after launch with zero input from the operator. It can accelerate to 250 kilometers per hour, has a maximum range of three kilometers, and an engagement altitude of two kilometers.
The interceptor uses a hit-to-kill method, meaning it brings down its target kinetically by directly smashing into it at full speed.
The Yolka is typically launched from a light handheld device. However, a remotely-controlled launch system with an electro-optical targeting system was showcased before. The system can carry at least two interceptors.
The Yolka first gained attention when it was spotted with Russian service members guarding the May 9 Victory Day parade in Moscow last year. The fact the interceptor was used during the event, which was attended by President Vladimir Putin and a list of international leaders, indicates that the system is both proven and mature.
The interceptor was apparently developed to counter smaller drones flying at lower altitudes, typically used for attack and reconnaissance.
The latest videos indicate that the Yolka has entered mass production, and is now being used by Russian troops on a regular basis in the special military operation zone.
Counter-drone systems like the Yolka are cheaper, more simple to produce and easier to use than traditional anti-aircraft missiles. Because of these qualities, the Russian military expanded the use of such systems in significant manner over the past year.
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russian troops = fertilizer
earn those shekels shlomo.
i wonder why no country ever produced an acoustic guided anti air missile to attack low subsonic, propeller airplanes & helicopters. a drone carrying such a missile inside ukraine could down lots of the slower geran hunter aircraft. such a missile tailored to the specific low sound wavelengths of propeller, rotary aircraft also would be a passive form of guidance providing no warning to the target aircraft. even may be used to attack jets as they take off or land