Nailing the Target: How Ukraine is Wielding France’s ‘Hammer’ Missile

In Ukraine, death from above is now more common than death from the front or sides.

The Hammer. Ministère des Armées

There is a certain primal fear associated with being hunted from above.

Maybe it’s the recurring genetic memory of our small mammal ancestors as they scurried along the forest floor.

Lightning has a similarly powerful effect on the human psyche – so much so that early humans created gods like Zeus or Lei Gong (the Chinese god of thunder) to explain the power overhead.

Many of my fellow Global War on Terror veterans never felt that fear because we never had to look up in worry that the enemy would strike from above.

Today, everything has changed.

There is no guarantee that one will achieve “air superiority” in a given battlespace, and even if we did, the term may need to be redefined now thanks to swarms of small, deadly drones that have recently made their combat debut.

In Ukraine, death from above is now more common than death from the front or sides.

And while drones are certainly an issue, I would be more fearful of advanced munitions striking down like a lightning bolt - or a hammer…