Ukrainian Air Assault Forces praise paratroopers for shooting down enemy drones with Martlet MANPADS

The Armed Forces of Ukraine are now in possession of the state-of-the-art British LMM Martlet missile systems.

Ukrainian Air Assault Forces reported destruction of Russian drones with these weapons.

One of the MANPADS operators has personally shot down nine enemy air reconnaissance vehicles which were adjusting artillery fire on Ukrainian positions.

He is a junior sergeant of the 95th Air Assault Brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

The Ukrainian Air Assault Forces Command noted that the soldier is one of the most effective anti-aircraft gunners of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

“His British MANPADS downs Russian “birds” for good, turning expensive equipment into scrap metal. And Russian invaders’ artillery remains blind,” the the military stressed.

Ukrainian anti-aircraft gunners predominantly encounter Orlan-10, the most mass-produced Russian reconnaissance drone. These enemy UAVs adjust artillery fire, conduct radio electronic reconnaissance, and establish communication barriers.

A Martlet anti-aircraft missile leaves barely anything of a Russian drone. Sometimes UAVs burn out completely.

The LMM Martlet is a new lightweight, precision strike missile designed for the British military by Thales Air Defense.

The LMM Martlet missile weighs 13 kg, has a length of 1.3 m and a hull diameter of 76 mm. Cumulative fragmentation warhead weighs 3 kg. When working on an air target it is detonated by a non-contact laser detonator.

The two-stage solid propellant engine ensures a relatively low rocket speed M = 1.5 (compared to Starstreak’s M > 3) and a long range (up to 8 km).

LMM Martlet’s prime feature is a two-channel guidance system using laser beam and infrared light at the end of the guidance area.