Danish anti-drone technology for Ukraine's Odesa could replace manpower: What it really costs
Illustrative photo: technology designed to protect Odesa from drones will replace human operators (Getty Images)
To protect Odesa from enemy drones, squadrons of autonomous vessels are being developed that will be able to patrol at sea continuously with a minimal number of shore-based personnel, states Charles Maher, BlueShadow founder and CEO, in an interview with RBC-Ukraine.
Details of the maritime platform's operation
The new system is planned to be deployed in squadrons of 12 vessels. Under the concept, 10 boats will remain on patrol at sea at all times, while two will stay at base for maintenance.
The platform is designed to operate continuously 24/7 throughout the year.
Such a fleet of unmanned boats can be managed by a small shore-based team.
"We'd have a shore-based team managing that squadron — we believe five people can handle that," Maher said.
He added that replenishment will be carried out on a rotational basis: one vessel is withdrawn from the sea, refueled, reloaded with interceptors, and then returned to service. This will enable continuous defense with minimal manpower requirements.
Cost of anti-drone protection
The developers note that research and design are still at an early stage, so the final price of the baseline configuration is still being adjusted. However, the estimated cost of the initial system has already been calculated.
"We expect the first squadron to cost around 10 to 12 million euros — that covers the shore-based command and control, integration into the national platform, plus spare parts for sustainment," the head of BlueShadow said.
The total also includes a full package of spare parts required for technical support and maintenance of the system.
What is known about the system
Danish startup BlueShadow has developed the unique Blue Dragon system to protect Ukraine's coastline, particularly Odesa, from regular kamikaze drone attacks. The technology consists of a swarm of autonomous unmanned surface vessels capable of detecting and destroying hostile targets approaching from the sea.
The system's main advantage is its ability to eliminate an unlimited number of drones at a distance of 10-20 kilometers from the shoreline. This would make it possible to intercept Shahed drones before they reach the coast, covering air defense gaps over maritime areas and protecting port infrastructure, civilians, and commercial shipping routes.
As previously reported, BlueShadow founder and CEO Charles Maher explained in an exclusive interview how the Danish startup is developing a defense solution for Odesa and provided an update on the project's current stage of development.
The developer also gave a detailed presentation on the operating principles of the Blue Dragon unmanned boat system during the final event of the Defense Builder accelerator.
