As of October last year, the Russian Federation has incorporated Plastun-SN off-road vehicles to address the lack of armored personnel carriers. Up until now, there had only been one documented case of such a vehicle being destroyed. However, the Russians have now documented the second loss of a Plastun since the start of the conflict.
In October 2023, the initial deployment of 14 Plastun-SN units took place within the Russian army. Subsequently, additional units were introduced, resulting in a total of 50 units. The introduction of these particular off-road vehicles, which possessed limited armor, had an immediate impact. By November 2023, the first photograph capturing the destruction of this new Russian equipment emerged online.
For a considerable period, no further updates regarding the Plastun-SN were available. However, the situation has now changed. According to the Ukrainian agency Unian, another Russian off-road vehicle was recently annihilated in the Luhansk region. This occurrence signifies the second officially recorded instance of its kind.
Russians lose a rare vehicle. It's a "field death capsule"
Despite being introduced to the front lines just last year, the Plastun has not gained popularity within the Russian army, as stated by military analyst Oleksandr Kovalenko. He describes these vehicles as field death capsules due to their lack of a hard roof.
One possible reason for the Plastun's limited popularity could be its limited defensive capabilities. However, it is worth mentioning that the Russian Federation has been regularly using similarly fragile constructions like Chinese golf carts and motorcycles for some time now.
The Plastun-SN was initially designed as an evacuation vehicle to compensate for the lack of armored personnel carriers in Russian units. However, they deviate from contemporary front-line standards due to their absence of a hard roof.
Another notable aspect of the Plastun-SN is its power unit. It is equipped with a 1.6-liter gasoline engine from Lada, generating approximately 100 horsepower and allowing the vehicle to reach a speed of 31 mph. Despite weighing nearly 9,000 pounds, the structure does not contribute to its mobility. Nevertheless, the Plastun is designed to handle slopes with inclinations of up to 30 degrees. Depending on the variant, it can also be equipped with an 82 mm mortar for combatting enemy units.
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