Remix News reported that members of the Ukrainian Air Force (PS-ZSU) used the Highly Agile Modular Munition Extended Range (HAMMER) bomb to attack Russian troops. Sources from both sides of the battle lines confirmed the deployment of the laser-guided HAMMER bomb on March 5.
Drone footage released by the Ukrainian military showed the precision-guided munition hitting Russian positions in the town of Kozachi Laheri in southern Ukraine on March 4. It featured the bomb with the phrases "for the children of Odesa" and "with hatred and no respect" written in the Ukrainian language.
Voennii Osvedomitel, a pro-Russian military information channel on the Telegram messaging app, also confirmed the attack. It added that a MiG-29 aircraft from the PS-ZSU dropped the bomb. The HAMMER guidance kit was attached to a 250-kilogram bomb.
The guidance kit is manufactured by Safran Electronics and Defense, which is based in France's Boulogne-Billancourt township. It attaches mobile wings, a rocket motor, advanced navigation and targeting electronics to a "dumb" unguided aerial bomb – turning it into a precision-guided aerial explosive.
The HAMMER kit, which is similar to the U.S.-made Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM), is even more accurate when laser guidance is used. According to Remix News, "the weapon is rated to reliably hit a square meter target at distances of over 70 kilometers (43.5 miles)."
French defense magazine confirms strike
Meanwhile, French defense magazine A&C confirmed that the strike had taken place. It added that French and Ukrainian engineers had collaborated to adapt the HAMMER bomb for use from a Soviet-era attack aircraft. While A&C did not specify the type of aircraft used in the March 4 Kozachi Laheri attack, the Russian Telegram channel identified it as the MiG-29.
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In January 2024, French President Emmanuel Macron announced that Paris would deliver 50 HAMMER systems to Kyiv monthly. The next month, French Armed Forces Minister Sebastien Lecornu said the PS-ZSU's MiG-29 jets and frontline Su-24 bombers would be adapted to carry the munitions. (Related: France promises to supply Ukraine with long-range cruise missiles, putting a target on itself for Russia’s nuclear weapons.)
The PS-ZSU's March 4 attack on Russian positions followed an earlier drone attack launched by Russia. Moscow reportedly launched Iranian-made Shahed-136 drones in the Ukrainian port city of Odesa, facing the black sea. According to Al Jazeera, a total of 17 drones were launched.
One of the Shahed drones struck an apartment block and exploded, causing the deaths of 12 people including five children. Two of the five juvenile casualties were babies. "Rescuers in Odesa have just uncovered the bodies of a mother with a three-month-old baby," Ukrainian Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko said in a March 2 post on Telegram.
The Shahed drones manufactured by Iran "do not return to base after an attack," Al Jazeera explained. "These 'kamikaze' drones carry explosives, dive toward a target and explode on impact. Russia has launched several thousands of these long-range winged drones throughout the war at targets deep inside Ukraine."
In the aftermath of the Odesa drone attack, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky reiterated his calls for the West to provide Kyiv with more air defense systems against these drones.
"We need more air defenses from our partners," he said. "We need to strengthen the Ukrainian air shield to add more protection for our people from Russian terror. More air defense systems and more missiles for air defense systems save lives."
Head over to MilitaryTechnology.news for similar stories.
Watch this footage of Russian precision-guided munitions destroying two Ukrainian combat vehicles published by the Russian Ministry of Defense.
This video is from the Russia Truth channel on Brighteon.com.
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Iran finally admits it is supplying Russia with combat drones.
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