Fixing a howitzer is not a simple DIY project — it requires a bit of experience.
The war in Ukraine is a modern war, which means it not only uses modern weaponry but modern tech communication platforms that help make fixing weapons more of a team effort.
The United States set up a communication system for Ukrainian soldiers to chat — or even video call — for assistance when fixing weapons in the field. And it’s being used.
By September 2022, $13 billion had been used to ship howitzers, missiles, mortars, helicopters, harpoons, aerial systems, tanks and more from the U.S. to Ukraine, as reported by The Hill.
Most — if not all — of which feature complex and heavy machinery.
With months of continuous use, these weapons are being used past their “breaking point” and malfunctioning — even exploding — in troops’ hands from natural wear-and-tear, per The Associated Press.
“They’re using these systems in ways that we didn’t necessarily anticipate,” one U.S. military officer stationed in Poland, who went unnamed in the article due to military guidelines, told AP. “We’re actually learning from them by seeing how much abuse these weapon systems can take, and where’s the breaking point.”
The chat system for cases like these, AP reported, allows Ukrainian soldiers to video call or virtually chat with someone who walks them through the steps on how to fix it. And most of the time, they do fix it and continue to use it.
But it’s not just any old chatting service with video capability — it’s encrypted to ensure safety and privacy, per Technology.
Other cases of useful tech in Ukraine include the ride-finding service, Uber, which helped shepherd many civilians to safety.
Especially at the beginning of the war, when many civilians were on the move to escape Russian attacks, Uber supported fleeing Ukrainians by offering free transport services through their on-the-ground drivers, as reported by the Deseret News.