Ukrainian Soldiers began fielding M141 Bunker Defeat Munitions and NLAW (Next Generation Light Anti-tank Weapon) systems which were received as part of West military aid, amid tensions over Russian troops build-up on the border.
On January 30, Armyinform reported that U.S. Army instructors have trained the first Ukrainian squad to operate SMAW-Ds recently provided by the Baiden administration.
The fielding process of M141 BDM ended with a familiarization firing at the International Peacekeeping and Security Center’s range in the Lviv region.
The M141 shoulder-launched munition is highly effective against targets including fortified positions, such as earth and timber bunkers, and is capable of breaching masonry walls and neutralizing light armored vehicles at ranges of 15-250 meters.
According to Colonel Oleksandr Molokov, deputy head of the 184th Training Center for Training, the training of Soldiers lasted only two days.
“US servicemen from the Joint Multinational Training Group Ukraine (JMTG-U) took an active part in training Ukrainians,” said Oleksandr Molokov.
Earlier this year, the Ukrainian Soldiers have completed a training course with instructors from the UK to use NLAW systems.
NLAW is the true tank killer for light forces that operate dismounted in all environments including built-up areas.
The unjammable and man-portable system can be deployed in around five seconds by a single soldier, day or night. With a combat range of 20–800 m and a single shape charge, NLAW is the best anti-tank weapon for infantries and dismounted troops in complex terrain.
NLAW can attack from almost any position, from up high in a building to behind a tree or in a ditch. With this system, Soldiers can fire down 45 degrees and can shoot from inside a building, from a basement or from the second floor of a building out of the range of most tanks.