Russian supply vehicle with anti-drone cage

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HoneyRush@reddit

Why this work? Surely the explosion on the cage will still break the windshield and injure people inside

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This could work in the slat armor/statistical armor method on RPG-7 variant fuses (where the fuse bypasses material and the body/ cone is crushed and thus shorts out the piezo electric impulse sent by the fuse).

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GunMun-ee@reddit

Most of the explosives tied to drones are normal RPG HEAT rounds, the iconic conical shaped ones. Shaped charges are not that deadly unless they hit you directly. Most of their destructive power is focused as a thin jet directly where the warhead is pointed. The rest is less powerful than a frag grenade. This is why they have dedicated fragmentation rounds, but i dont see them in drones that much.

Putting even 2 yards from you and a frag grenade could be the difference of life and death.

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Walletau@reddit

depending on frag, 0.5m means difference between lethal and injured.

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CIS-E_4ME@reddit

This was my first thought. Not to mention any fragmentation shrapnel is going right through the sheet metal.

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ChampionshipHot6803@reddit

I think it's more psychological than actual protection. Drive out there in no or a cage that at least has a tiny chance of keeping a drone away. They will pick a cage every time. It's like in ww2 when they put sandbags on the Sherman. No real extra protection but soldiers felt safer.

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DisgruntledNCO@reddit

Do they drive with the hood open? Super confused by why it’s open.

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Punny_Yolk@reddit

It probably runs hot from the drag + weight so they likely pop the hood when not running for faster cooling.

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DisgruntledNCO@reddit

That makes a lot of sense.

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Baobabman-7603@reddit

zombie proof maybe , but frag drone proof probably not

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Legendary_TaeYamada@reddit

If it works, it works. If it doesn't, you're gonna be far too dead to care.

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adorgu@reddit

I highly doubt this is gonna do anything. The dron is gonna explode against the cage and there is zero shield between it and the car.

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7ilidine@reddit

If you double the distance to an explosion the intensity of the blast and potential risk of being hit by shrapnel drops to about a fourth.

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Iron_physik@reddit

if the drivers wear body armor their survival chances are MUCH higher that way compared to a direct impact

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adorgu@reddit

if the drivers wear body armor....

Yeah... about that...

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guluta@reddit

as a ex-mobilized russian soldier i can say that being sent to die like that is a form of fucked up punishment (something like fragging, honestly from the higher ups)..

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HKEY_LOVE_MACHINE@reddit

The car is likely to be totaled (tires will be slashed, engine lines will be cut) on the first hit, but it might increase the survival rate of the occupants.

The second and third FPVs will deal with the rest then.

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jason_abacabb@reddit

True, but it depends on the charge. If it is a HEAT warhead (like the ubiquitous rpg warheads) then this distance decreases the chance that you catch the copper spray right in the face and even if it is a well designed shrapnel charge you are going to decrease the amount that hits you. Distance matters for both blast pressure and shrapnel dispersal.

I was lucky enough to never get one shot at me but I know people that were awfully close to rpg impacts that made it out the other end because of the directionality of the blast.

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HKEY_LOVE_MACHINE@reddit

A lot more FPVs nowadays carry a brick of modern high-explosive, over a makeshift RPG/grenade payload. You only ever see the RPG ones when they're going after armored targets and need the extra long jet penetration.

Any distance is worth taking though, HEAT or not.

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PG908@reddit

It keeps opportunistic anti-infantry munitions from easily connecting. A lot of drones would only have the minimum payload needed for their task (which increases range and maneuverability while decreasing cost).

Because of the inverse square math, a few feet and a layer of tempered glass or plastic really can make a difference. It also helps protect the cargo, since the driver is not the only target.

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Cheshire_Jester@reddit

They might be more concerned about being able to recover parts from the vehicle at this point.

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Haxeu@reddit

There's a tiny chance that the drone hits the cage but doesn't detonate, that's about it I guess

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Traumerlein@reddit

Copegaes on unarmoured vehicals are even better than ERA on unarmoured vehicals. Granted, it still does absolutky nothing, but the ERA bricks would add to the destruction.

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