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1,300 decommissioned warheads headed to Ukraine from Canada

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Canada’s recent delivery of 1,300 warheads for 70mm CRV-7 unguided rockets to Ukraine signals a significant shift in the ongoing arms race as the war in Ukraine intensifies.

These warheads, part of a larger military aid package unveiled last June, were pulled from Canada’s own stockpiles, highlighting the country’s commitment to supporting Ukraine with surplus yet valuable military assets.

This batch of warheads arrives alongside various other decommissioned military hardware, including armored personnel carriers and reconnaissance vehicles. But it’s the rockets themselves that stand out in terms of their potential impact on Ukraine’s artillery capabilities.

After years of storage, these warheads and their associated rocket motors will be reactivated, likely contributing to Ukraine’s growing capacity for precision, if not guided, rocket strikes.

The delivery carried out aboard a C-17 Globemaster transport aircraft, landed in Poland in December, though the announcement was delayed for security reasons. “Originally used by Canada’s CF-18 Hornets, the warheads had been out of service for some time, making their reactivation for Ukrainian use a strategic decision that underscores the ongoing military partnership between the two nations,” Defence24 reports.

In an era of rapidly evolving warfare, these warheads—along with the CRV-7 rocket motors—could prove to be a game-changer for Ukraine’s missile platforms, particularly for helicopters and mobile artillery units.

The CRV-7 system itself, developed during the Cold War, is a product of the need for a highly adaptable and reliable air-to-ground weapon. The 70mm rockets are primarily designed for deployment from fixed-wing aircraft, but their simplicity and effectiveness have allowed for use in other platforms, such as helicopters and ground-based artillery.

The unguided version of the rocket is designed to create a powerful, imprecise impact on a target, often making it useful against soft or lightly armored targets, such as troop concentrations, light vehicles, and infrastructure.

The warheads themselves are relatively simple, with a focus on delivering a potent explosive payload rather than precision targeting. Typically equipped with high-explosive or fragmentation charges, the 70mm warheads are capable of causing significant damage to both personnel and equipment within their blast radius.

This makes them ideal for saturation fire, where the goal is not necessarily to hit a precise target but to blanket a large area, such as a military base or a column of advancing troops.

What sets these warheads apart in the context of the ongoing war in Ukraine is their strategic versatility. As part of a larger package of Canadian military aid, which includes everything from armored vehicles to small arms, these warheads are now being integrated into Ukraine’s rapidly evolving arsenal.

The addition of these warheads, when paired with the appropriate rocket motors and launch systems, provides Ukrainian forces with a potent tool for countering Russian advances in both urban and rural environments.

While these warheads have been stored for years after being phased out of active service, their reactivation in Ukraine’s defense efforts highlights a key aspect of modern military logistics—using older systems in new ways.

The Canadian-supplied warheads may not offer the precision of newer, more advanced munitions, but they make up for it in volume and flexibility. This aligns with the Ukrainian strategy of maximizing available resources to create a more flexible, resilient military force capable of adapting to shifting tactical needs.

For Ukraine, the 70mm warheads represent more than just an influx of munitions; they are a means of enhancing current capabilities. The warheads can be used with existing rocket systems, meaning they don’t require new platforms to be effective.

They also offer a cost-effective solution in a conflict where access to advanced, precision-guided munitions can be limited by supply chain issues and budget constraints.

As a result, the 70mm warheads contribute to Ukraine’s ability to strike with a combination of firepower and saturation, overwhelming enemy positions or softening up targets for follow-up strikes by more advanced systems.

In terms of battlefield impact, the 70mm CRV-7 warheads’ primary utility comes from their role in increasing the range and lethality of existing Ukrainian rocket systems.

While these warheads do not have the guidance systems of modern precision missiles, their sheer explosive power and the ability to carry out rapid, repeated strikes make them valuable for targeting entrenched positions, infrastructure, and massed enemy formations.

As Ukrainian forces continue to adapt and refine their tactics against Russian forces, the ability to deliver powerful, though less precise, strikes will likely prove useful in both defensive and offensive operations.

This new chapter for the 70mm CRV-7 warheads also underscores a broader trend in military assistance to Ukraine: the reliance on older, yet still effective, weapon systems. As more advanced weapons systems are either unavailable or in short supply, the ability to repurpose older systems has become a key part of the Ukrainian war effort.

The CRV-7 warheads, while no longer cutting-edge, are a testament to the flexibility of modern warfare, where the value of older technology can be rediscovered and repurposed for current needs. In this context, the warheads may be far from the latest in high-tech weaponry, but they are still potent tools for the Ukrainian military’s ongoing fight.

Ultimately, the 70mm CRV-7 warheads are a symbol of the creative approaches to warfare that are becoming more common in the modern conflict landscape. With the shifting nature of warfare, particularly in the context of Ukraine’s struggle against a much larger adversary, older, decommissioned technologies like these are being given new life, proving that in war, it’s often not the latest technology that makes the difference, but how effectively it can be used in the right hands.

The CRV-7 rocket system, originally designed for use by fighter aircraft, is now being integrated into a variety of platforms. The system is primarily designed for air-to-ground applications but is versatile enough to be adapted for use in multiple contexts.

Ukraine, with its diverse range of military equipment, is expected to deploy the CRV-7 warheads and rocket motors across several of its platforms, including both aircraft and ground-based systems.

The primary platform for the CRV-7 rockets within Ukraine’s arsenal will likely be its fleet of helicopters. Ukrainian Mi-8 and Mi-24 helicopters, which are integral to its rotary-wing capabilities, are already capable of launching unguided rockets like the CRV-7.

These helicopters are often used for close air support, troop transport, and anti-tank operations, making them a key asset for launching such versatile munitions. The CRV-7 warheads, when mounted on these helicopters, will offer Ukraine a potent tool for striking enemy positions with powerful, if less precise, firepower over a medium range.

In addition to helicopters, Ukraine’s use of CRV-7 rockets may extend to its ground-based systems, specifically rocket launchers designed to fire 70mm rockets.

These launchers, potentially adapted from existing systems or retrofitted with specialized pods, can offer the Ukrainian military a cost-effective means of delivering multiple rocket attacks to saturate enemy positions or provide suppression fire during ground engagements.

The CRV-7 warheads could be used in these systems for area bombardments, targeting everything from troop concentrations to logistics hubs and light armor.

Another possible platform for the CRV-7 rockets could be Ukraine’s various artillery systems, particularly those that are capable of adapting to unguided rockets. While more commonly associated with guided munitions, certain artillery platforms may be modified to accept the CRV-7 rocket pods, increasing the flexibility of Ukraine’s artillery units.

These systems could be used for rapid-response fire support, delivering a wide spread of rockets over a broad area, creating saturation effects on enemy forces in both defensive and offensive operations.

Overall, the CRV-7 rockets, given their relatively simple design and adaptable launch platforms, will enhance Ukraine’s ability to strike with high explosive power over a wide range of targets, whether from the air or the ground.

The addition of these munitions to Ukraine’s arsenal will allow it to leverage existing military assets for increased firepower, especially in a conflict where flexibility and resourcefulness are key.

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