THIS is the dramatic moment a Russian thermobaric launcher was blown up as Putin’s troops were obliterated in Ukraine’s bloodiest battle.
The impressive strike happened during the failed siege of Vuhledar, Ukraine, in which the Kremlin conceded one of its worst military losses on record.
telegramThe moment a Russian thermobaric launcher is hit by Ukrainian forces in Vuhledar[/caption]
telegramThe Russian war machine ignited in flames[/caption]
The high-ground strategic hamlet in Donetsk has seen intense fighting and bloodshed since January as Putin’s army tries to claim the southeast region.
But the Russian leader’s military efforts have ultimately failed, seeing more than 5,000 of his elite marines wiped out like “turkeys in a shooting range” in the process.
The Ukrainian forces also managed to destroy 130 units of enemy equipment including 36 tanks.
However, this is the extraordinary moment a Russian TOS-1A thermobaric multiple rocket launcher was destroyed.
Robert Lee, a Russian defense policy expert, posted the extreme footage on Twitter.
The epic scene is filmed from a Ukrainian drone that is hovering above the soviet tank, which was later decimated.
The initial strikes were captured, causing the rocket launcher vehicle to be engulfed in flames and spew out with smoke.
The wrecked piece of kit was hit again and then completely exploded.
The social media video has more than 247,000 views.
Ukraine’s 72nd Mechanized Brigade was responsible for the on-target hit.
The strike is a blow for Putin as he loses yet another of his terrifying war machines.
The TOS-1A Thermobaric MLRS is capable of horrific destruction.
It incorporates a heavy flamethrower system as well as carrying multiple rocket launchers that can be fitted with thermobaric warheads – also known as vacuum bombs.
Mad Vlad deployed them early in the war during intense shelling in the Kharkiv region, in February 2022.
The thermobaric weaponry can spread fine carbon metal particles into the air before igniting them.
Due to the wide area of the ignited particles, the blast sucks in oxygen from the surrounding area, which is why it is called a vacuum bomb.
The blasts normally bring a shockwave with them, causing enormous damage.
The carnage of the tank can be added to the tactical failures of Kremlin commanders who have been lambasted by Russian hardliners.
Igor Girkin, a Russian former intelligence officer, called for public show trials to punish incompetent generals responsible for the battlefield embarrassments.
Girkin said: “Some of them are complete cretins – all the mistakes that were made before, were repeated.”
Vuhledar is about 100 miles from Bakhmut, the epicentre of the war’s fiercest fighting for several months.
Both sides have sustained heavy losses there after Russia hurled vast numbers of conscripts and prisoner recruits into “the meat grinder”.
Ukraine officials claim 824 Russian soldiers are dying on average a day.
That is four times higher than rates seen last summer.
The British Ministry of Defence confirmed the figure as “likely accurate”.
However, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky went a step further, claiming an “unprecedented” number of Russians were being destroyed.
Zelensky told Pravda: “The situation on the frontline, especially in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions, remains extremely difficult.
“It is literally a battle for every metre of Ukrainian land.
“That is where the unprecedented destruction of Russian potential is taking place now.
“Everything that the enemy loses in our Donbas, it will not be able to restore and this is exactly the potential of Russian aggression that the leadership of the terrorist state expected to destroy our entire Ukraine.”
In the village of Krasna Zorka, Crimea, a local crematorium is cremating Russian occupiers around the clock, according to Pravda.
The report claimed the cremations were being used by Russians to try hide their losses.
A constant queue of up to ten military vehicles have been seen near the crematorium.
SOPA Images/LightRocket via GettA TOS-1A Thermobaric launcher in action[/caption]
telegramAn aerial shot of the first strike on the Russian war machine[/caption]
APMore than 36 Russian tanks have been destroyed during the battle of Vuhledar[/caption]
ReutersAerial footage of Vuhledar[/caption]
ReutersThe town has been totally destroyed as a result of the war[/caption]
ReutersUkrainian gunners have been fending off Russian advances in the region[/caption]
