(Zaman Al Wasl)- The Syrian resistance in eastern Hama damaged a Sukh-22 airplane by launching a number of colorful balloons filled with hydrogen gas in its direction. The plane was forced emergency land in Hama’s military airport on October 12, and it went out of services following the incident.
The Syrian resistance has started using this new weapon as an anti-aircraft weapon after three months of trials during which hundreds of thermal balloons filled with, locally produced, hydrogen gas where launched into the air.
In August, a number of university graduates, air force pilots, helicopter pilots, and media activists managed to execute the idea they call “the balloon of life.”
Mohammad Amin al-Hamoud, an engineer, one of the participants in the project, indicated that those involved faced three tasks, the first obtaining a certain kind of balloon.
The balloon had to be of a certain size, and made for particular material so it would not be damaged. Second they had to produce the hydrogen gas to fill the balloons. Third they had to fund the project as the launching is intense and they must launch over 2000 balloons on a daily basis to entirely cover the sky of the area.
Al-Hamoud explained the mechanism idea was taken from records of the first and second world war and was used to generate hydrogen gas using a locally made boiler. The hydrogen is made from aluminum metal and sodium hydroxide, and a gas cooling product.
After producing the gas, it is filled into cylinders which are then moved to the workshop.
There an explosive detonator is prepared with some RDX, an explosive, and a steel pin to tie them to the balloon. Our speaker clarified, “hydrogen is the lightest element in nature and when a balloon is filled with it, flies very high and for long distances. It can reach up to 7 kilometers.”
He indicated that airplanes’ have a turbine engine which draws air to the main motor and when the airplane sucks in the balloon in, it will enter into the sensitive propeller chamber and the explosion will break the propeller blades burning the engine. An airplane thus hit will have to go out of service.
Since the start of the battle of Aleppo, fighters have managed to launch 8000 balloons preventing airplanes from executing aerial strikes on fronts and civilian targets.
Al-Hamoud indicated that the issue came as surprise to the regime and Russian fighter jet pilots. He indicated, “resistance observation overheard pilots talking about their inability to fly low due to the presence of the balloons at 4 kilometers above sea level, and the balloons forced the pilots to fly at an alleviation of 5 kilometers which weakened their ability to maneuver and hit targets.”
According to our speaker, the situation has caused a situation of panic among pilots, and one Sukhoi 22 has been taken out of service after its encounter with the balloons. As al-Hamoud confirms, the Sukhoi 24 returned from its area of operation and landed with all its cargo, and it was unable to execute its air strikes.
Al-Hamoud highlighted that “jets with one engine if they suck in a balloon they fall immediately. Airplanes with two engines they have to go for maintenance work which takes a long time which means they remain out of service.”
Regarding the difficulty that they faced in launching the idea, our speaker clarified, “the first of these difficulties is the danger of producing hydrogen gas, as if the interaction is not controlled it may lead to an increase in pressure and the explosion of the boiler. Those working in the process execute a detailed production plan and apply it lower than average, as the metal of the boiler has not been studied chemically.”
In addition, rainy weather may cause the balloons to fall due to the weight of the rain. The balloons are also affected by the speed of the wind which forces the balloons’ direction, so the direction of the wind is factored into choosing the launch location. Al-Hamoud also pointed out that the initiative is individual and requires support.
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