Ukraine’s artillery pinned down by Russian drones By Reuters

By Dan Peleschuk

DONETSK REGION, Ukraine (Reuters) – Rumbling out of its forest hideout, the hulking German-supplied howitzer has only a few minutes to fire before slipping back under cover to evade Russian surveillance in the skies above.

Across the hills and valleys of the east, Ukrainian artillery units play a cat-and-mouse game with Russian drones hunting high-value artillery weapons such as this self-propelled Panzerhaubitze 2000.

Moscow’s troops have stepped up ground attacks along the 1,000-km (621-mile) front in the south and east of Ukraine, threatening some of the industrialised Donetsk region’s last big cities held by Kyiv more than two years after Russia’s full-scale invasion.

Counterbattery efforts are crucial to suppressing enemy fire that rains on Ukrainian lines and artillery units, and paves the way for Russian advances.

Crews including the one Reuters recently visited, part of the 43rd Artillery Brigade, say they face increasing harassment from enemy drones that have become a staple of Russia’s arsenal.

“There were (attacks) before, but not the same amount,” said battery commander “Lyova”, 27, using his call sign. “Now it’s really scary.”

Lyova, who is from western Ukraine, said his unit had been directly hit four times by Russian high-tech Lancet attack drones. Crew members remained largely unharmed thanks to the Panzerhaubitze’s armour.

Russian reconnaissance drones such as the Orlan or the more advanced Supercam are a particular nuisance, said senior battery officer Andriy Stavnychyi.

“Sometimes it happens that there’s lots of work for the day, but we can’t move because something is always flying above,” Stavnychyi, 31, told Reuters during a visit to the unit’s underground command post.

Enemy surveillance drones often pose a greater risk to Ukrainian artillery units than Russian counterbattery radar, according to Rob Lee, a senior fellow at the Foreign Policy Research Institute (FPRI).

The Panzerhaubitze rotates among multiple hiding spots around the unit’s position, which the Ukrainian military requested not be disclosed. They are nestled deep in tree cover and feature hand-built wooden frames that shroud the vehicle.

PRIME TARGETS

Stavnychyi echoed other Ukrainian troops and senior officials who have called for more electronic warfare systems to jam Russian drones.

Western-supplied artillery such as the Panzerhaubitze is a priority target for…