Russia is using cheap drones to spot Ukraine’s air defenses

MOSCOW:

Russia has begun including new, cheap drones in its long-range attacks in Ukraine to try to spot air defenses, film any damage and act as decoys, a senior Ukrainian military spy said.

The two new types of drones, which Russia has used in five drone strikes over the past two to three weeks, including Thursday’s overnight strike, are made from materials such as foam plastic and plywood, the official told Reuters.

One guy carries a camera and a Ukrainian cell phone SIM card to send images back to the Russian military.

“They’re determining where our mobile groups are positioned, where the machine guns are that can destroy them. They’re trying… to get a picture of where all our air defenses are,” said Andriy Cherniak, a spokesman for the military’s intelligence service.

The previously unreported details from Cherniak are further evidence that Russia is seeking to adjust its tactics and test new technology to gain an advantage during daily missile and drone raids on Ukrainian cities and infrastructure.

Iranian-designed Shahed attack drones, which fly toward their target and explode on impact, have become a staple of Russian airstrikes since they were first used in the first year of Russia’s full-scale invasion that began in February 2022.

Ukraine, which has appealed to the West to provide more air defenses to fend off increased Russian airstrikes on its power facilities since March, is trying hard to hide the locations of its air defense systems.

The new Russian camera drones do not carry explosives, but look very similar to regular Shahed drones and fly in groups of them, Cherniak said.

The second new type of drone contains no explosive charge or only a small one and is used as a decoy, Cherniak added.

Because it is virtually indistinguishable from a regular attack drone from the ground, it has yet to be shot down, revealing the location of Ukraine’s air defense systems.

He said the new drones likely cost as little as $10,000 each despite their long range, making them much cheaper to produce than air defense missiles.

The drones can also fly at an altitude of 1,000 meters (3,000 feet), putting them out of range of machine guns and automatic rifles, he said.

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has served as a testing ground for drone warfare technology, with both sides extensively using attack and reconnaissance drones on the battlefield. Kiev has pumped energy into domestic drone production to narrow the gap between its strike capabilities and Moscow’s, staging long-range drone attacks on Russian targets, including oil refineries.

Russia says the long-range airstrikes are being used to degrade Ukraine militarily. Ukraine says Russia’s attacks hit civilian buildings and caused heavy damage to civilian energy facilities and civilian casualties.

Russian troops occupy about 18 percent of Ukrainian territory and have made gradual gains in the east in recent months, putting Kiev in the rear along a 1,000-kilometer (600-mile) front line.