Ukrainian army announced that it captured 250 Russian soldiers in a 'zombie vehicle' attack

Compiled by: Oğuzcan Atış / Milliyet.com.tr – More than 4.5 years have passed in the Russia-Ukraine war, which started with Russian President Vladimir Putin's announcement that they launched a "special military operation in Ukraine" on February 24, 2022. As the war prepares to leave its 5th year behind, the tempo on the front line is expected to decrease as winter conditions set in and the soil becomes muddy, as in previous years. However, experts do not foresee a decrease in casualties on both sides due to the intensive use of unmanned systems. In addition, the parties are currently trying new tactics based on the experience they have gained from current conflicts. One of the latest examples of this was the "zombie vehicle" attack carried out by the Ukrainian army recently.

Ukrainian military officials announced that 250 Russian soldiers were captured in the attack.

The Ukrainian army recently carried out a "zombie vehicle" attack on the front line for the first time. Military officials shared the information that 250 Russian soldiers were taken prisoner as a result of the comprehensive attacks. Brigadier General Andriy Biletsky announced that within the scope of Operation Vivaldi, in which unmanned systems were used, the troops under his command captured an area of ​​approximately 100 kilometers in the Russian-occupied region north of the city of Lyman in northern Ukraine.

THEY TURNED ARMORED VEHICLES FROM THE SOVIET ERA into "ZOMBIES"

According to the statement made by General Biletsky, BTR-60 type armored personnel carriers from the Soviet Union period were used in the attack against the Russian army. These vehicles were modified to be operated unmanned before the attack and were turned into bomb-laden vehicles. Bomb-laden unmanned armored vehicles, defined as "zombie vehicles", were used in attacks on the most heavily fortified positions of the Russian army. According to Biletsky, as a result of the attack, at least 250 Russian soldiers were captured and approximately 2 thousand Russian soldiers lost their lives.

In the images published about the "zombie attack", it is seen that a bomb-laden BTR-60 type armored personnel carrier exploded at Russian positions after advancing rapidly. Stating that Ukraine has been secretly working on the "zombie attack" tactic for a long time, Biletsky stated that the attack was the 3rd season of a 4-season series and signaled that there would be many similar attacks in the future.

It is stated that the cost of turning old armored vehicles into bomb-laden vehicles after they are unmanned is 4 thousand dollars (approximately 196 thousand TL). With the approach of winter, it is estimated that the Ukrainian army's demand for "zombie vehicles" will increase due to the muddiness of the land on the front line and the difficulty of moving small unmanned ground vehicles.

"THERE ARE MANY VEHICLES IN THE MARKET THAT WE CAN USE"

According to the information in the Telegraph Newspaper, the Ukrainian army has been trying different tactics in its recent drone attacks. In this context, during the recent attack, unmanned ground vehicles carried by drone systems were left behind the Russian army's front lines and hit Russian army positions from behind. Ukrainian engineer "David", who participated in the development of "zombie vehicles", said that turning ordinary vehicles into zombie cars has many advantages over unmanned land vehicles.

The engineer said that ordinary vehicles, unmanned bomb-laden vehicles, can be faster than existing unmanned ground vehicles, and stated that these vehicles can also carry more load and be more effective in "zombie vehicle" attacks. David stated that the company he works for has recently delivered at least 2 zombie vehicles to the Ukrainian army and that they have received orders for at least 3 more, and that this method does not create a large burden in terms of costs, as there are vehicles on the market that can be quickly turned into "zombie vehicles".