World
Ukraine’s Nifty DIY Decoy Cruise Missile Aims To Tip Balance Of Power On Battlefield
By Belal Awad · July 31, 2023
In brief…
- Ukrainian volunteers known as the Pars Design Bureau have developed the "Trembita" cruise missile.
- The DIY device appears to provides Ukraine a low-cost advantage in its conflict with Russia.
- The missile incorporates advanced electronics in the warheads for accurate targeting.
- Trembita enables soldiers to operate further away from the front line.
- The missile is so effective that measure must be taken to protect production facilities from Russian attack.
In a remote Ukrainian town, a group of volunteers known as the Pars Design Bureau has been quietly working on a project: the “Trembita” cruise missile. Named after the traditional Ukrainian mountain horn, the resourceful group believes their locally made missile will provide Ukraine with a key advantage in its ongoing conflict with Russia.
The Trembita missile is the latest effort by the volunteer outfit, who have already earned a reputation for producing hundreds of mortars for the war effort. Their mission is to create an affordable yet operable missile capable of overwhelming Russian air defenses. The missile boasts two major advantage: low cost and high accuracy - thanks to the incorporation of advanced electronics in the warheads.
According to Serhii, a volunteer with the group, the focus is on creating thousands of cheap decoys to saturate Russian air defenses, thus enabling Ukraine’s more sophisticated attack rockets to hit their intended targets. This strategic approach holds the promise of tipping the balance in favor of Ukraine’s forces over their formidable Russian foes, Serhii told France 24.
As the group showcases the Trembita’s capabilities to mechanically inclined volunteers from other towns, enthusiasm for the project grows. Yulia, a volunteer from the Kyiv region, expressed her satisfaction with the ongoing production, stating, “I’m very happy that this kind of production is developing in Ukraine. And I like how these weapons are all designed to let soldiers operate further away from the front line.”
As skilled volunteers plan further collaborations for the mass production of the Trembita, the need to safeguard their production facilities from Russian missiles becomes ever more essential. In the meantime, Ukraine’s scrappy, resourceful army of civilian mechanic-volunteers continues to work away, manufacturing their humble but effective arsenal that many indeed help make victory a reality.