Loitering munitions have revolutionized modern warfare by providing unprecedented capabilities for precise target strikes. Among these cutting-edge systems, the UJ-32 LASTIVKA stands out as a formidable loitering munition designed to operate under various conditions. With its ability to fly day or night in adverse weather and electronic countermeasures situations, the UJ-32 LASTIVKA offers remarkable flexibility and efficiency in engaging immobile ground and waterborne targets. This article explores the features, capabilities, and unique design of the UJ-32 LASTIVKA, highlighting its importance on the modern battlefield.
Unmatched Operational Flexibility
The UJ-32 LASTIVKA boasts exceptional operational flexibility, ensuring its effectiveness in various scenarios. Designed to operate in visual and adverse weather conditions, this loitering munition provides tactical advantages regardless of the time of day or year. Additionally, it is engineered to overcome electronic countermeasures, ensuring its ability to complete its mission successfully. The UJ-32 LASTIVKA maximizes its operational performance by considering the operation technique, making it a reliable asset for military forces.
One of the standout features of the UJ-32 LASTIVKA is its ability to engage targets with outstanding precision. With a target hit accuracy of no more than +/- 2.5 meters, this loitering munition ensures minimal collateral damage and increases mission success rates. Moreover, the UJ-32 LASTIVKA can change or abort its flight task during a mission, enabling operators to adapt swiftly to evolving situations and effectively engage multiple targets.
To amplify its impact on the battlefield, the UJ-32 LASTIVKA can be deployed in a “flock” mode, where multiple loitering munitions operate simultaneously to strike a single target. This cooperative engagement approach enhances the destructive potential against high-value targets. Furthermore, the UJ-32 LASTIVKA offers the option to redirect its course to engage different targets, maximizing its operational flexibility and ensuring efficient utilization of available munitions.
Warhead Options
The UJ-32 LASTIVKA’s adaptability sets it apart from conventional loitering munitions. While it employs RPG-7 ammunition as a standard warhead configuration, it can be easily modified to engage other types of ammunition. This versatility allows military forces to customize the munition to meet specific mission requirements and optimize its impact on the intended targets.
Reconnaissance Capabilities
In addition to its striking capabilities, the UJ-32 LASTIVKA can be equipped with an onboard camera, enabling supplemental reconnaissance missions. Switching the warhead with the camera module allows operators to gain real-time situational awareness and gather valuable intelligence before, during, or after a strike mission. This integrated reconnaissance capability further enhances the UJ-32 LASTIVKA’s effectiveness and contributes to a more comprehensive operational picture.
Design and Performance
The design of the UJ-32 LASTIVKA reflects a fusion of innovation and practicality. Its simplistic yet efficient structure incorporates a tubular fuselage housing an RPG-7-type grenade projectile as the active charge. The loitering munition features traditional straight mainplane members and “V-canted” tailplanes, ensuring control and stability during flight. A twin-bladed propeller in a pusher configuration powers the UJ-32 LASTIVKA, allowing it to reach speeds ranging from 60 to 180 km/h. The compact and lightweight design of the UJ-32 LASTIVKA enables easy portability, while its catapult rail launch system ensures rapid and efficient deployment.
Operational Parameters
The UJ-32 LASTIVKA exhibits impressive operational parameters contributing to its effectiveness on the battlefield. With a flight duration of 20 minutes and a maximum autonomous flight distance of 40 kilometers, this loitering munition offers ample time and range to locate and engage targets. Operating at altitudes below 2,000 meters, it maintains a low profile, making detecting and engaging enemy air defenses difficult. The UJ-32 LASTIVKA’s cruising speeds of approximately 100 km/h allow for swift maneuverability and quick target acquisition.
Another advantage of the UJ-32 LASTIVKA is its low noise emissions during launch and flight. This stealthy characteristic minimizes the risk of detection by enemy forces, enabling covert operations and increasing the element of surprise. By eliminating visual and infrared (IR) wakes, the UJ-32 LASTIVKA further reduces the chances of enemy countermeasures or tracking systems detecting its presence, ensuring successful mission execution.
Time is a critical factor in military operations, and the UJ-32 LASTIVKA addresses this by offering a short assemble/disassemble time. Its user-friendly design allows for swift assembly, ensuring prompt readiness for deployment. The loitering munition’s lightweight and compact size facilitates easy transportation and rapid integration into the operational environment, enabling military forces to respond quickly to emerging threats or tactical opportunities.
Conclusion
The UJ-32 LASTIVKA represents a significant advancement in loitering munition technology, providing military forces with a versatile and highly effective tool for striking the immobile ground and waterborne targets. Its operational flexibility, precision target engagement capabilities, adaptability, and supplemental reconnaissance features make it an invaluable asset on the modern battlefield. With its unique design, swift assembly time, and silent operations, the UJ-32 LASTIVKA offers a sophisticated solution for military operations that require precise and efficient target strikes. As the demand for agile and effective unmanned systems continues to grow, the UJ-32 LASTIVKA stands at the forefront of loitering munitions, exemplifying the cutting-edge advancements that shape the future of warfare. The UKRJET is in the middle of interest after unveiling the UJ-22 Airborne drone, which gathered attention after being spotted near Moscow.
Technical specifications
| Country of origin: | Ukraine |
| Manufacturer: | UKRJET |
| Designed: | 2021 |
| Maximum autonomous flight distance: | 40 km |
| Minimum flight altitude: | 2 m |
| Maximum flight altitude: | 2000 m |
| Maximum flight time: | 20 minutes |
| Two persons | Up to 10 minutes |
| The average clotting time: | 4 minutes |
| Takeoff type: | The average set-up time: |
| External crew: | 2 persons |
Components
- Loitering munitions (10 units)
- Ground Control Station
- Launching unit
- Spare parts, tools, and accessories set
- Bags for loitering munitions transportation on foot
- High-level protection boxes for transportation and storage
- Operating documents set
