Ukrainian military officials have refuted claims made by Russian propaganda channels regarding the use of Russia’s most powerful non-nuclear ODAB-9000 thermobaric bomb in Vovchansk, northern Kharkiv Oblast. Experts also refute the claims, noting that the explosion footage shows a heavy but less powerful bomb equipped with a gliding kit, unlike the ODAB-9000, which uses parachute deployment.
On 2 October 2024, Russian Telegram channels circulated a video purportedly showing a powerful bomb strike on a Vovchansk neighborhood. Multiple Ukrainian Telegram channels and media shared the video, repeating the Russian claims.
Russia reportedly used massive FAB-9000 aerial bomb in Vovchansk.
It weighs 9,000 kg. pic.twitter.com/RzGIYs5ESb
— Clash Report (@clashreport) October 2, 2024
The channels claimed that Russian aviation had deployed the ODAB-9000, Russia’s most powerful thermobaric bomb.
However, Ukrainian military experts quickly cast doubt on these assertions. Defense Express suggested that the munition used in the Vovchansk attack was more likely to be a heavy but less powerful dumb bomb fitted with a UPMK gliding kit. The website noted that Russia has been known to use ODAB-1500 thermobaric bombs with UPMK kits, as well as FAB-3000 bombs, both of which can be deployed by Su-34 fighter-bombers.
Later, Ukrainian Colonel Vitalii Sarantsev, spokesperson for the Kharkiv Operational and Tactical Group, stated that the Russians likely used a munition of lesser power and weight. He noted that no movements of strategic bombers, capable of carrying the ODAB-9000, had been observed in the airspace at the time of the attack. He suggested that the claimed explosion’s power was exaggerated by Russian media to create a more dramatic narrative.
“I once again urge representatives of the Ukrainian media and administrators of Telegram channels to adhere to information hygiene, use verified sources of information, and refrain from spreading fake messages from Russian propagandists, which only play into the enemy’s hands!” Sarantsev said.
Sarantsev stated that such reports may be aimed at demoralizing Ukrainian defense forces, intimidating the local population, and destabilizing the region.
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