FAB-3000: Russia turns deadly dumb bomb into standoff smart munition

Russia has begun the mass production of the FAB-3000 – a three-ton air-launched munition packed with a whopping 1,400 kg of explosives.

“These weapons have an enormous destructive effect,” retired Russian colonel and military analyst Viktor Litovkin told Sputnik, commenting on the FAB-3000’s capabilities.

“They can strike at strong points, at underground, concrete-reinforced command points. They can penetrate their targets, exploding and destroying everything, including underground warehouses, underneath concrete-reinforced roofs, and so on. Of course, they can also hit enemy personnel and military equipment. These are very powerful bombs because they cause enormous destruction,” the observer stressed.

Equipping the basic FAB-3000 free-falling munition with an UMPK (‘Unified Planning and Correction Module’), wings and rudder turns the dumb bomb into a laser and satellite-guided, glide-assisted standoff weapon that’s almost impossible to intercept. “That is, the aircraft can avoid entering the coverage area of the enemy’s air defenses, drop the bomb, and it will fly to the target and inflict damage, fulfilling its mission. These are its advantages – power and accuracy,” Litovkin said.

Along with the Tupolev Tu-22M3 supersonic strategic and maritime strike bomber, Litovkin expects the FAB-3000 to be carried by the Sukhoi Su-34 fighter bomber, and possibly Su-25 close air support and Su-24 tactical bombers.

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❗️The shooting occurred in the Crocus City Hall in Moscow, at least 3 people in camouflage opened fire. Some people are wounded, Sputnik correspondent reports.

Video from social media.

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Smoke occurred in Moscow’s Crocus City Hall, firefighters rushed to the scene, emergency services reported.

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Reports appear on social media about an explosion in the Crocus City Hall building in Moscow.

Video from social media

❗️Details about the shooting in Crocus City Hall from a Sputnik correspondent who was at the scene:

People in camouflage, at least three of them, burst into the ground floor of the Crocus City Hall and opened fire with automatic weapons. There are definitely wounded"

After that, according to him, they threw a grenade or an incendiary bomb, which started a fire.

“The people in the hall lay down on the floor to escape the shooting, lay there for 15-20 minutes, after which they began to crawl out. Many managed to get out.”

❗️Law enforcement officers are working at the scene of an emergency in Crocus City Hall, reports Sputnik correspondent

❗️The Governor of the Moscow Region Vorobiev reported that he had gone to the site and an operational headquarters had been created

Russian Belgorod has been bombed twice in its history. That's who did it.

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⚡️An operational headquarters has been created at the scene of the emergency in the Crocus City Hall in Moscow, all forces and means are directed to the scene of the incident, information about the victims is being clarified, the local administration reported

Footage of fire in Moscow's Crocus City Hall

⚡️More than 50 ambulance teams have been sent to Croсus City Hall area to provide medical care to everyone in need, the Moscow Region Ministry of Health told Sputnik

Footage of Crocus City Hall in these minutes

❗️About 100 people were escorted out of Crocus by firefighters, reports the Moscow region headquarters of the Ministry of Emergency Situations.

An operation is underway to rescue people from the roof of the building using lifting mechanisms.

US embassy in Moscow hinted at upcoming terrorist attack few weeks before Crocus Hall shooting

"The Embassy is monitoring reports that extremists are planning to attack large gatherings in Moscow, including concerts, in the near future, and US citizens should avoid large gatherings for the next 48 hours,” the embassy wrote in a statement published on its website on March 7.

When the warning was first issued, it raised eyebrows among Russian observers since there was no public information suggesting that a terrorist attack was likely. The US embassy has yet to clarify what potential terrorist threat it was referring and where it got the intelligence from.

❗️The White House commented on what happened at Moscow's Crocus City Hall: the United States is aware of reports of the shooting, considers the footage from the scene “horrifying”

❗️Security officers are working at the scene of an emergency in Crocus.

❗️The White House claims that it had no information about the preparation of a terrorist attack in Moscow

❗️ The entire international community should condemn the tragic events in Crocus City Hall, said Russia Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokeswoman Maria Zakharova.