Why Ukraine Is Cannibalizing Brand New Weapons For Drone Warheads
Workshop imagery from Ukraine shows how to dismantle a Swedish AT4 anti-tank weapon and convert it into a warhead for an FPV drone. We have seen many how-to demonstrations repurposing obsolete munitions before, but this is a brand-new weapon, likely supplied direct from the U.S., with a list price of around $3,000. Why is Ukraine cannibalizing a perfectly good Bazooka-type weapons for a drone warhead?
According to the OSINT analyst going by Roy who posted the images, the reason is simple. And it is not because of a shortage of other warheads. “I think Ukrainians believe that unguided shoulder launched weapons have limited value,” Roy told me.
The Rise Of The ‘Bazooka’
The U.S. has supplied Ukraine with more than 100,000 unguided shoulder-launched anti-armor weapons. These are the direct descendants of the original U.S. Army 2.36-inch M-1 Rocket Launcher from WWII, universally known by it's nickname of 'Bazooka'. Previous anti-tank weapons relied on high-speed projectiles to pierce armor. The Bazooka used the new technology of the shaped charge. This does not need to strike at speed, but produces an armor-piercing jet of metal when it detonates.