Kirpi in Ukraine: Video everyone's talking about

The war between Russia and Ukraine, which began in February 2024, continues in some form, sometimes intensively and sometimes at a moderate scale. Contrary to claims made before the war, Russia could not reach Kyiv in 72 hours. Ukraine, receiving significant support from Western countries, particularly the U.S., has also been unable to repel the attacks comprehensively. At this point, the struggle on the ground continues in some way, but with scenes that are completely different from what we saw in the early days. Initially, we witnessed armored vehicles stretching for kilometers, tanks, missiles worth millions of dollars, and much more. However, this 'unsustainable' situation for both countries has given way to another reality: trying to inflict the greatest damage on the opponent in the cheapest way possible. This is how the drone attacks, of which we have seen dozens of different examples almost every day in recent times, began.' A recently surfaced video on social media is one of the interesting examples of this new era, and it is particularly relevant to Türkiye. In the footage, a Turkish-made BMC Kirpi armored vehicle belonging to Ukraine is seen advancing in open terrain. It doesn't take long for Russian drones to notice them. First, we see the initial drone approaching at high speed. It crashes into the BMC Kirpi with all its force. Then the second and third drones follow. The attacks from the Russian drones, equipped with powerful explosives, do not stop the Kirpi. The operator somehow continues on their path. Next, we watch the fourth drone targeting the Kirpi. Just when we think it can't advance any further, the Kirpi continues on its way. Ultimately, it is only with the fifth drone that we see the Kirpi rendered unable to advance any further. At this point, let's add a note. According to foreign experts closely following the situation, the Ukrainian personnel managed to evacuate before the fifth attack came. They left the rear door open, allowing the last drone to enter and cause significant damage. If the door had not been open, the Kirpi would have had a good chance of withstanding the attack. ''From what I can see in the video, the Kirpi narrowly escaped from some of the attacking drones,'' says defense industry expert Fatih Mehmet Küçük. While one might think that the drones missed their targets, he emphasizes that this is not the case. In fact, he points out that the drones did not miss; rather, the Kirpi's strong maneuverability allowed it to evade direct hits through quick last-minute maneuvers. Küçük then begins to describe the video segment by segment and answers the question of why the BMC Kirpi did not explode during the first drone attack that hit its target: ''There are two reasons for this. First, tanks generally move at slower speeds and often find themselves under FPV drone attacks while stationary. In such cases, they are typically hit from above, targeting the tank's engine, fuel, or especially the top of the turret. The tank's turret armor is thinner, and there are many munitions in the turret compartment, which can lead to an explosion. However, the situation is different with the Kirpi... It does not carry as much concentrated munitions as tanks do. Additionally, from what we see in the video, the rear section where the personnel are located was primarily targeted. The motor and other critical components that enable the Kirpi to move are located at the front of the vehicle. We can even see that the fire suppression system in the vehicle was activated after the first attack. This feature allows the driver to continue performing their duties despite extremely challenging conditions.''