The Crucial Role of Drones in the Ukraine War (and Who Supplies Them)

in the war of Ukraine Thousands of drones are being used to locate enemy positions, launch missiles and directly fire artillery.

Both sides are deploying purpose-built military drones and widely sold commercial drones.

Which military drones do Ukraine and Russia have?

Ukraine’s main military drone is the Turkish-made Bayraktar TB2. It is about the size of a small aircraft, has cameras, and can be equipped with laser-guided bombs.

Jack Watling of the Royal United Services Institute (Russian) think tank says Ukraine started the war with a fleet of “fewer than 50” of these.

Russia mainly uses the “smaller and more basic” Orlan-10, he explains. “Russia started the war with a few thousands of them, and there may be a few hundred left.”

this drone too they have chambers and they can carry small bombs,

How effective are military drones?

Both side drones are most effective at finding enemy positions and guiding artillery fire toward them.

“The Russian army can point its weapons at the enemy” in just three to five minutes Orlan-10 drones after detecting a target,” Watling says.

Without them, an attack could take 20 to 30 minutes to complete, he adds.

Defense studies researcher Martina Miron at King’s College London says drones have allowed Ukraine to increase its limited forces.

“In the past, if you wanted to search for enemy positions, you had to send special forces units to do it and you could lose some soldiers,” he says. “The risk you’re taking now is a drone”,

In the first weeks of the war, Ukraine’s Bayraktar drones were widely praised.

“They were shown attacking targets such as ammunition dumps, and played a role in sinking [buque de guerra] Moscow, ”says Miron.

However, many Bayraktars Has been destroyed by Russian air defense systems,

“They’re big, they’re moving relatively slowly, and they only fly at a moderate altitude, which makes them easy to shoot down,” Watling says.

How are non-military drones used?

Military drones are expensive to replace: a Bayraktar TB2 costs about $2 million.

So both sides, but Ukraine in particular, are turning to smaller business models like the DJI Mavic 3, which costs around $2,000.

A Ukrainian drone maker estimates the country’s military has 6,000 drones, but this is impossible to confirm.

Commercial drones can be equipped with small bombs.

However, they are mainly used to detect enemy troops and direct attacks.

“Ukraine doesn’t have as much ammunition as Russia,” says Miron. Having “eyes in the sky” means aiming and direct artillery fire. to make better use of what they have,

Commercial drones are much less powerful than military drones.

The DJI Mavic has a range of only 30 km and can fly for only 46 minutes.

Cheaper and smaller drones fly for even shorter times and cover shorter distances.

How does each side defend against drones?

Martina Miron says that Russia uses radar protection against military drones and electronic equipment against commercial drones.

“The Russian military has a stuper rifle, which fires electromagnetic pulses,” he says. This prevents commercial drones from being able to navigate using GPS.

Russian forces have also used online systems such as Aeroscope to detect and intercept communications between commercial drones and their operators.

they can cause the drone to crash or return to base, and may prevent you from sending information,

According to a Russian report, the average Ukrainian drone barely lasts a week.

Who is supplying the drones?

Russia is now buying Iranian Shahid Military DroneAccording to the White House.

Houthi rebel forces in Yemen used them to attack targets in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

The United States is supplying Ukraine UNOS 700 Drone Militar’s “Kamikaze” Switchblade.

They are loaded with explosives. They float in the air until they find their target.

Elon Musk’s SpaceX is providing its Starlink satellite communications system to Ukraine. This creates a secure link between commercial drones and operators.

DJI has now stopped supplying drones to Russia or Ukraine.

How does Ukraine pay for drones?

Ukraine has placed a crowdfunding request for the purchase of 200 military drones.

“Besides big drones like [Bayraktar] TB2, they are looking at small, fixed-wing reconnaissance drones,” says Jack Watling.

Eurovision Song Contest winning Ukrainian group Kalush Orchestra sold the trophy US$900,000 who donated to the drone campaign. Along with this, three PD-2 drones made in Ukraine will be purchased.