The moment Ukraine destroys a rare Russian armoured vehicle first used at the Chernobyl nuclear disaster in drone strike

This is the moment Ukraine destroyed a rare Russian armoured vehicle first used at the Chernobyl nuclear disaster.

Battlefield footage showed the Ladoga nuclear command vehicle being taken out during a Ukrainian drone strike.

The Soviet-era vehicle was designed in the seventies to move senior Kremlin staff around in the event of a nuclear attack and was built using the chassis of a T-80 main battle tank.

In 1986, the vehicle was dispatched to the scene of the Chernobyl nuclear catastrophe and was said to have performed well by the explosion of Reactor No 4 at the nuclear power station.

But Manufacturer LKZ built no more than four or five, including the prototype, which where dispatched around the country for further testing.

Its appearance on the Ukrainian battlefield draws attention to Russia's problems in replacing their current tank fleet, which has taken a battering since the war began two years ago. 

Battlefield footage showed the Ladoga nuclear command vehicle being taken out during a Ukrainian drone strike

The old-school vehicle was designed in the seventies to move senior Kremlin staff around in the event of a nuclear attack

Vladimir Putin's forces have lost 6,904 tanks since invading Ukraine on February 24, 2022, according to an estimate from Kiev sources.

To combat this, Moscow officials have be seen pulling antiquated tanks out from storage, with some from as early as the fifties seen in photos and videos posted online.

AFV Recognition, an authoritative social media account tracking Russian armour, told The Telegraph: 'Out of all the vehicles that have been pulled out of storage and used by Russia in this war, this is one that was really at the bottom of my list to even see in theatre, never mind destroyed.'

Russia has claimed it increased the production of new tanks since the start of the war to replace those lost in the fighting.

But experts believe the military is actually renovating older equipment that has been in storage since the end of the Cold War or possibly longer.