Russian drones use camera-based navigation to bypass electronic warfare - Presidential adviser
Photo: Serhii “Flash” Beskrestnov, freelance adviser to the president (t.me/serhii_flash)
Russia has equipped its Geran-4 and Geran-5 attack drones with an optical navigation system that uses images of the terrain for guidance. These drones are not affected by electronic warfare, according to Serhii "Flash" Beskrestnov, a freelance adviser to the president on the development of defense technologies.
Russia has begun equipping its Shahed attack drones with a system that allows them to fly without satellite navigation. The principle is simple: images of the terrain the drone is supposed to fly over are preloaded into its memory.
During flight, the drone compares these photos with images from its camera to determine its location. According to "Flash", even ordinary satellite images of the ground from Google are sufficient for basic navigation.
The main danger is that electronic warfare does not affect such a drone. Jamming that throws drones using satellite navigation off course simply has no effect on it.
The technology itself is not new to Russia: it has long been used on small Molniya, V2U, and Lancet drones. However, a similar system was recently found on the Geran-4 and Geran-5 attack drones, as Russia calls its Shaheds. It operates on a flight controller called Susanin.
"Flash" predicts that next year, such systems will be actively developed for medium- and long-range drones, as well as low-cost cruise missiles.
In late September, "Flash" explained how the Russian forces managed to film their own strike on the Inkom business center in Kyiv. According to him, no secret technology or agents were needed. Earlier, the adviser assured that Russian attacks would not leave the entire country without internet, as Ukraine's communication channels are as decentralized as possible.
Electronic warfare systems, meanwhile, remain one of the key tools of Ukraine's air defense. According to The Wall Street Journal, the Lima system diverted two ballistic missiles this year that were heading toward a government facility in Kyiv, sending them toward the Dnipro River.
