Ukrainian Drone Crew Scores Direct Hit on New russian Malva Artillery System
Yuriy Fedorenko, the commander of the Achilles UAV unit, posted a video on his social media showing an FPV drone crew hitting the newest russian Malva wheeled self-propelled artillery system.
The video indicates that russian artillery unit was targeted in the Kharkiv region, near Lyptsi-Hlyboke direction, and reports suggest the vehicle was damaged. The footage demonstrates the use of an FPV drone with automatic target guidance.
This is not the first time this particular russian artillery unit has been damaged. Recently, photos showed another Malva unit hit by the M30A1 missile with tungsten balls, marking the first recorded damage to this system. However, the vehicle was not destroyed and appears to be repairable.
The first recorded sighting of russian 2S43 Malva on the battlefield was in June this year, when it was spotted by one of Ukrainian reconnaissance UAVs in Belgorod region.
This wheeled self-propelled artillery unit is considered an analog to the French CAESAR system. It boasts a declared range of 24.5 km, a combat weight of 32 tons and an ammunition load of 30 shells. It is built on the BAZ-6010-027 chassis with the 2A64 152 mm gun. In 2023, russia began developing a longer-range version of this artillery unit in response to criticism that it lagged behind the Western systems in range.
