Ukraine war: What Panzerfaust 3 weapons can do against Russian tanks

Russia's T-72 and T-80 tanks can easily be targeted by the Panzerfaust 3.

As the war in Ukraine drags on, the Netherlands agreed to send 40 Panzerfaust 3 anti-tank weapons and 400 missiles to Ukraine including 200 Stinger air defence systems.

Ukraine forces have shown great resilience in the past month to push back Russian tanks with Putin's forces still able to assert control over the country.

In fact, the Netherlands is also jointly considering with Germany to send the Patriot air defence system to a NATO battle group in Slovakia amid tensions with Russia.

Panzerfaust 3 is a shoulder-launched weapon with a fire control launcher unit. It has proved its mettle in the Ukraine war.

 

The German weapons system is a man-portable rocket-propelled grenade that can penetrate 900 mm, 35 inches of steel armour and is known as a tank destroyer.

Russia's T-72 and T-80 tanks can easily be targeted by the Panzerfaust 3. There are several Russian tanks lying in a destroyed state currently all over Ukraine as Putin's regime counts the material casualties in the war.

The weapon system is manufactured by Germany’s Dynamit Nobel Defense, a subsidiary of Israel’s Rafael Advanced Defense System.

It has a combat range of 984 feet against moving targets and 600 meters against static targets and it can be operated by a single soldier and can also target armoured vehicles including stationary aircraft and light bunkers.

In fact, according to reports, Germany will send 2,000 additional anti-tank weapons to Ukraine to help it repel the Russian invasion. The Ukrainian forces have already received 1,000 anti-tank weapons and 500 Stinger-type surface-to-air missile launchers from the Bundeswehr, the German army.

Germany has also provided around 500 Strela surface-to-air missiles out of 2,700 promised.

Germany was reluctant to send weapons to Ukraine as Russian troops massed at its border last year. But Chancellor Olaf Scholz changed that policy following the start of the Russian invasion last month.

Germany had previously prohibited itself from exporting lethal weapons to conflict zones because of its history under Nazism.

Baerbock told parliament Wednesday that the rest of the weapons promised to Ukraine were "on their way".

 

Amid Ukraine's stiff resistance against Russian forces, the US government announced it would be providing $800 million worth of arms to fight the war.

Apart from the Stingers and other missiles, the Biden administration would be sending hundred Switchblade loitering munitions to Ukraine.

The "Switchblades" are also called Kamikaze drones. There are two variants of the  Switchblade drones – Switchblade 300 and Switchblade 60.

(Photo Courtesy: Aerovironmentinc: Instagram)

The Switchblade 300 is considered an ideal "loitering missile" for use against beyond-line-of-sight targets. It is used by mobile forces which is what the Ukraine Army is currently fighting on several fronts. It can be rapidly deployed on air, land and sea platforms.

Switchblade 300 also relays real-time GPS coordinates and video for precise targeting. The Switchblade sensor-to-shooter (S2S) combines ISR capabilities with small unmanned aircraft systems for precision strike capabilities.

Clearly, the new blades meant of the Ukraine Army can strike and destroy any Russian target as it defends its territory against an overwhelming force.

(Photo Courtesy: Aerovironmentinc: Instagram)

 

The software of the Switchblade targets coordinates through machine-to-machine communication which reduces engagement timelines. The software provides Switchblade operators with real-time video downlinks for a centralised view of the area of operation.

It has a range of 10km with an endurance time of 15 minutes. It carries 2.5kg which includes a payload, launcher and transport bag and fits inside a rucksack.

It can cruise at 63 mph and can dash at 100 mph. It is also popularly known as an "angry bird" or a "buzzing bee".

(Photo Courtesy: Aerovironmentinc: Instagram)

As the war in Ukraine continues, Moscow-backed separatists said that fragments from a shot-down Ukrainian Tochka-U missile ripped through the centre of the eastern city of Donetsk killing 23 people.

Moscow called it a "war crime" as rebels published images of bloody corpses strewn in the street.  However, Ukraine's army denied firing a missile at the city, with Ukrainian army spokesman Leonid Matyukhin saying in a statement: "It is unmistakably a Russian rocket or another munition."

Russian President Vladimir Putin discussed the strike with Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, the Kremlin said.

Separatists, who have controlled the city since 2014, had earlier said fragments from a rocket they shot down had left between 16 and 20 civilians dead.

The Tochka-U ballistic missiles can be mounted on a 6×6 truck. It has a range of 120 kilometers. Reports claim Ukraine has around 90 Tochka-U missiles in its arsenal.

The missile is considered perfect against buildings with personnel and armament. It is a Soviet-era missile which was first deployed in the 1980s.