Ukrainian troops have identified and eliminated several Russian soldiers wearing unusual camouflage suits known as „Penguin,” according to Ukrainian military sources and images from the battlefield made public this week.
Although designed to conceal the silhouette in snow-covered terrain, the equipment seems to have had the opposite effect, writes Defence Blog.
Tests in real combat conditions
The 120th Territorial Defense Brigade of the Ukrainian Armed Forces announced that its fighters have eliminated at least two Russian soldiers using these suits in recent days. Confrontations took place in open, snow-covered areas where Russian troops reportedly tested the new equipment directly in combat, without a prior evaluation period.
The camouflage that brought them into focus
According to Ukrainian soldiers, the suits were designed to reduce visual detection in winter environments, but in practice, they attracted attention.
The published images show a Russian soldier dressed in a bulky white suit resembling a penguin, moving clumsily on a snow-covered field before being targeted by a Ukrainian drone-guided system.
Ukrainian soldiers involved in the clashes say that the equipment did not provide camouflage but made the wearer more easily observable due to the shape and way of movement. In the relatively flat and obstacle-free steppe terrain, such a silhouette quickly stands out and attracts the attention of observers and drones.
Soldiers, guinea pigs for experimental equipment
The direct testing of new equipment on the battlefield is a practice frequently reported in the case of the Russian army. According to Ukrainian units, in this case as well, soldiers seem to have been used as test subjects in real combat conditions without the camouflage systems being effectively adapted to the terrain and current tactics.
The "Penguin" camouflage seems to have been intended for winter operations, with a wide outer layer meant to blur the human body's outline. In reality, say Ukrainian soldiers, the design limited mobility and made movement more difficult, increasing visibility when soldiers crossed open areas.
Ironies on social networks
In the comments accompanying the online images, users made a connection with a recent post from the White House, in which Donald Trump is seen alongside a penguin, the comparison being used ironically to describe the new Russian army camouflage suits.