The Ukrainian Ministry of Defense reported the successful attack on two Russian Raptor-class patrol boats by Bayraktar TB2 drones armed with smart ammunition.
This action represents the operational debut of a Turkish Bayraktar TB2 unmanned aerial system on a naval strike mission, in real combat conditions.
As reported by the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense via its twitter account, the two vessels were attacked in the early hours of Monday, May 2, near Snake Island in the Black Sea.
While the Bayraktar TB2, operated by Ukrainian forces, has been used intensively for observation and intelligence missions, artillery fire correction or ground targeting missions, this is the first time it has been used operationally against naval vessels.
It is worth noting that one of the Project 03160 «Raptor» speedboats was moving at good pace when it was hit.
????Головнокомандувач ЗС України генерал Валерій Залужний:
Сьогодні на світанку біля острова Зміїний було знищено два російські катери типу Раптор.
Працює #Байрактар.
Разом до Перемоги!???????? pic.twitter.com/3wxlwjDtdx— Defence of Ukraine (@DefenceU) May 2, 2022
The publication does not clarify what type of ammunition the drone used to destroy the Russian patrol boats, but for ground attack missions, the Bayraktar TB2 is usually armed with guided micro-munitions of the MAM family, developed by the Turkish firm Roketsan.
MAM-C
The MAM-C lightweight smart micro munition was developed for unmanned aerial vehicles (it can also be used by light attack aircraft) for air-to-ground missions where weight is a critical factor.
Being the smallest of the family, the MAM-C has a diameter of 70mm, a weight of 6.5 kg, a range of 8 km and is guided to its target by a laser.
MAM-L
The MAM-L ammunition offers high accuracy and strike efficiency, with alternative warheads against fixed and moving targets.
Also laser-guided, the MAM-L is a heavier and more powerful ammunition. It has a diameter of 160mm, a range of 15 km and weighs 22 kg.
Drones and unmanned aerial systems have been demonstrating their supreme importance as a force multiplier, especially thanks to the intensive use that the Ukrainian armed forces have been making of them since the beginning of the Russian invasion.
And in particular the Bayraktar TB2 (which has already been acquired by Poland, and maybe soon by Slovakia) has been playing an outstanding role during this conflict.
