ZALA Lancet attack drone. © Marina Lystseva/TASS
Russia has apparently armed the Africa Corps with Lancet loitering munitions to better support the Malian Armed Forces (FAMa) in its fight against the separatist Tuareg Azawad Liberation Front (FLA) and al-Qaeda-affiliated Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM).
The two groups launched a large-scale offensive across the Sahel country on April 25, and managed to make some notable gains. Since then, the FAMa has been working to push back the militants, with direct support from Russia’s Africa Corps.
Video footage showing the first known Lancet strike in Mali was released by the Africa Corps on June 2. The strike targeted a pickup truck carrying militants in the town of Nazarak in the northeastern region of Tombouctou. The loitering munition scored a direct hit.
The pickup truck was likely carrying militants from JNIM, which is known to be active around Nazarak, and in other parts of Tombouctou.
Russian drone manufacturer ZALA Aero Group produces two models of the Lancet: the Izdeliye-52 with an endurance of 30 minutes and a one-kilogram warhead and the larger Izdeliye-51 that has an endurance of 40 minutes and is armed with a warhead weighing three kilograms.
The Lancet flies towards the designated area with a GLONASS-aided inertial navigation system. After arriving in the area, the operator utilizes an onboard electro-optical guidance system via a two-way data-link to detect, track and lock on the target. A laser-ranging system then controls the detonation of the warhead.
The latest versions of the Izdeliye-51 feature significant upgrades, including artificial intelligence support for both the navigation and guidance systems.
The Lancet is guaranteed to boost the capabilities of the Africa Corps, which has been increasingly using drones in the fight against FLA and JNIM.
Just last month, the wreckage of a Garpiya-1As one-way attack drone, made by the Russian company IEMZ Kupol, was found in Mali.
The situation in Mali has now stabilized, and in coming months, the FAMa and the Africa Corps could launch a counteroffensive to push back both the FLA and JNIM, which are still holding up to several areas close to the capital, Bamako, in the northeast and elsewhere in the country.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
SouthFront: Analysis and Intelligence
NOW hosted at southfront.press
Previously, SouthFront: Analysis and Intelligence was at southfront.org.
The .org domain name had been blocked by the US (NATO) (https://southfront.press/southfront-org-blocked-by-u-s-controlled-global-internet-supervisor/) globally, outlawed and without any explanation
Back before that, from 2013 to 2015, SouthFront: Analysis and Intelligence was at southfront.com
