Although Russia’s army vastly outspends Ukraine’s, it does not have the money to issue every soldier with the latest equipment
. Videos of such attacks suggest the Russians are unable to detect them. But modern armies have long used night-vision technology. Why is Russia’s invasion force struggling to see in the dark?
The first military night-vision systems, from the second world war, used infra-red searchlights whose sweep could be seen only by special detectors. These worked well unless the enemy also had infra-red sensors, in which case the user stood out like a beacon. Modern armies have two types of night-vision gear that avoid this problem. Thermal imagers, as used by Aerorozvidka, detect the infra-red radiation given off by warm objects and display it using bright colours.
The advantage of night-vision was evident in Operation Desert Storm in 1991. American forces boasted that “we own the night” as they outmanoeuvred and outfought an Iraqi army which lacked modern night-vision gear. John Lehman, a former secretary of the navy, later told Congress that it was the ability to operate “when all of the rest of the world’s defences are at 10% of what they are in daytime” that gave American forces their edge.
Samuel Cranny-Evans of RUSI, a defence think-tank, says that armies mainly use night-vision gear in the form of personal units, such as goggles or weapon sights, and devices fitted to vehicles. Exactly how many Russian military vehicles are fitted with night-vision technology is unclear, although newercome with thermal imagers derived from a design by Thales, a French defence supplier, which Russia imported.
But unlike Western armies, Russia does not routinely issue night-vision gear to dismounted troops. Only a select few special forces and reconnaissance units get the equipment, says Mr Cranny-Evans. This is borne out by images of captured Russian soldiers. So far only units have been pictured with night-fighting equipment. This may be because the technology is expensive and delicate, and inexperienced or conscripted soldiers are not trusted with it.
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