MULINO (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 13th September, 2021) The unmanned aerial vehicles Inokhodets, also known as Orion, and Forpost were tested in combat for the first time during the joint Russian-Belarusian strategic military exercise Zapad-2021, the Russian defense ministry said on Monday.
The Inokhodets and Forpost combat drones' attack provided air support for the offensive of Russia's motor rifle division, tank brigade, and units of Armenia and Belarus, a ministry spokesperson told reporters.
"The Inokhodets and Forpost reconnaissance and combat unmanned aerial vehicles equipped with guided missiles, target designation and observation systems were used for the first time in practice to support the advancing troops," the spokesperson said.
In addition, the exercise at the Mulino training ground in the Nizhny Novgorod Region featured new combat drones from the Lastochka complex, which "inflicted a fiery defeat on openly deployed manpower and destroyed an armored target of a simulated enemy with fragmentation and high-explosive warheads," the ministry said.
The Zapad-2021 exercise is the final stage in the joint training of the armed forces of Belarus and Russia this year. Practical actions by troops take place from September 10-16 at nine training grounds located in Russia, in the waters of the Baltic Sea, as well as at five training grounds in Belarus.
