In the process, Ukrainian media, citing Russian sources, assured that this bomb was an ODAB-9000. On Telegram, a pro-Kremlin account quickly seized the news. “It was decided to use something great in Volchansk: the ODAB-9000 vacuum bomb. This was the first time it had been used during the entire war.. It is a thermobaric bomb which would have an explosive power equivalent to nearly 44,000 kg of TNT.
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This information was quickly denied by the operational and tactical unit (OTU) of Kharkiv. La Libre showed this video to Tom Simoens, professor of military history at the ERM (Royal Military School). The expert agrees with the OTU: it is not the famous ODAB-9000 bomb.
The bomb works with oxygen from the surrounding air to generate an intense explosion and shockwave, causing widespread destruction over a wide area. However, this does not seem to be the case here. “On the video, everything goes very quickly”he begins. “We see that it reaches almost vertical before having an impact with the ground. This results in the black dot on the video. However, with the ODAB-9000, the explosion occurs in the air.”
If he is impressed by the impact of the bomb, he assures that an ODAB-9000 can be even stronger in intensity. “Of course, the impact is very great. But it is different from so-called ‘gliding’ bombs. Here I think it’s a classic guided bomb.”
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Tom Simoens: “Not all planes are capable of carrying this bomb.”
Another argument put forward by the OTU to refute the use of this bomb: the carrier does not stick. “To use this ammunition, you need a suitable tool, which theoretically could be, for example, a Tu-160 strategic bomber, but the movement of such an aircraft was not recorded.”also declared the spokesperson, Vitaliy Sarantsev.
Words corroborated by the expertise of Tom Simoens. “This bomb weighs three tons. Therefore, you need a certain type of aircraft to transport them before releasing them. Not everyone is capable of carrying out this type of mission. In addition, the movements of this type of aircraft are detected by the Ukrainian army or its allies.”
According to the Ukrainians, this heavy explosion was “used by propagandists to create a ‘spectacular’ image”.
On the other hand, this video clearly describes the difficulties encountered by the Ukrainians in the face of enemy attacks. “On average, the Russians drop 125 bombs of this type or slightly smaller per day in Ukraine.continues the Belgian historian. “Faced with this, Ukraine has no response to provide. Russia has been using them for a year now, sometimes with errors because they are not always precise. This caused significant damage, which allowed the Russian army to advance on the ground afterwards. These repeated attacks also explain why the army advances despite all its faults.”
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In all likelihood, the bomb dropped would therefore not be the ODAB-9000. Which does not mean that the Russian army does not hold it. “The Russians say they have it, but I don’t think they’ve ever used it. The United States had already used this bomb in Afghanistan. This bomb is not that complex to create. It detonates in two stages and Russia masters this type of technology. Therefore, we must remain wary.”
