Australia recently announced plans handing over 300 DefendTex D40 flying mines to the Armed Forces of Ukraine. What is this unusual weapon?
A Drone40 carried by a British soldier. Image credit: Crown Copyright via The Drive
According to the manufacturer’s specifications, this flying mine can not only be used against enemies: this relatively small device has enough power to deal damage even to armored fighting machines. heavy vehicles, including tanks. A video of the test illustrating the capabilities of “DefendTex” appeared on the Australian channel 7news.
Australia will deliver 300 bases of DefendTex D40 ammunition to Ukraine.
These units are launched from a 40mm grenade launcher or by hand. pic.twitter.com/AJFDxUB9nh
– ️ English (@TpyxaNews) August 19, 2022
Flying mines can be launched with a 40mm grenade launcher. Or, if there is no launcher at hand, it can be launched manually. Basically, DefendTex D40 acts as a kamikaze drone (also known as bombs and bullets lurking), and thus the ‘D’ stands for ‘Drone’ (the full name of this weapon is Drone40).
A soldier trains with a D40 drone. Image credit: US Army
The expected flight range of this weapon is 20 km. Flight time is from 30-60 minutes, depending on weather conditions. GPS based navigation.
The drone is just 7 inches long and weighs less than half a pound. The weight of the built-in ammo is about 300 grams. The device is also water resistant (waterproof – according to official specifications) and supports drone operation.
Last year, D40 was used in exercises of the United States Marine Corps. Subsequently, the United States armed forces considered compact size, low cost and simple operation as the main advantages in any battlefield. The equipment is cheap enough to be used up; however, if it is not destroyed during the quest, it can be used again.
Furthermore, Multiple D40s can work together as a swarm after launch, or can even work with other unmanned systems in a coordinated manner, as a heterogeneous swarm of UAVs.
Key specifications of the D40. Image credit: DefendTex
DefendTex is an Australian arms manufacturing company serving militaries and law enforcement agencies around the world. The company is engaged in the production of drones, bulletproof vests, chemical protective equipment, as well as products for the energy industry.
The same manufacturer also produces a larger drone model called D155, which can be used to deploy a smaller D40 in a remote location, greatly extending the effective range: when used together, these drones can cover a wide range. microsynthetic about 100km. However, D155 is not mentioned among the items in Australia’s latest military aid package for Ukraine.
The D155 drone can be used to deploy the smaller D40. Image credit: DefendTex
