Unique development. Defense Forces confirm use of drones with FAB-250 bombs
Photo: The Defense Forces confirmed the use of drones with FAB-250 bombs (photo from open sources)
Ukraine is indeed using drones with FAB-250 bombs to strike targets in Russia. This is a unique development, according to the Ukrainian Armed Forces' Unmanned Systems Forces (USF).
"The USF command confirms the use of long-range UAVs capable of carrying a 250-kg aerial bomb and covering up to 2,000 km with the possibility of returning. This is a unique development that changes the rules of the game on the battlefield," the statement reads.
According to the military, Russian propaganda constantly claims to have "shot down" such aircraft, but explosions at military-industrial complex facilities, oil refineries, and ammunition depots tell a different story.
"Operators of the 14th Separate UAV Regiment of the USF have been striking behind enemy lines for over a year, covering hundreds, and sometimes even thousands, of kilometers. There have already been dozens of such missions, and more are to come," the Unmanned Systems Forces state.
Arming drones with aerial bombs
It became known in April 2024 that Ukraine had turned another sports aircraft into a long-range strike drone. The wreckage of one of these drones was found in Russian territory more than 600 miles (965 km) from the Russian-Ukrainian border.
The drone was mentioned again in the context of the attack on the Druzhba pipeline station near Novozybkov on the night of January 30. Analysts noted that during the operation, the Defense Forces used an "unusual weapon system" – a drone carrying a 250-kg aerial bomb.
Such cases of use, analysts claim, have occurred before, but previously the Ukrainian Armed Forces equipped drones with FAB-100 bombs, not FAB-250s.
