Ukraine announces final trials of interceptors against guided aerial bombs
Illustrative photo: Russia launches KABs from an Su-34 (Getty Images)
Ukraine is working on countering Russian guided aerial bombs. To this end, several companies are developing special interceptor drones, states Colonel Valerii Vyshnivskyi, Senior National Representative of Ukraine to JATEC and Director of Program Implementation at the NATO-Ukraine Joint Centre, to journalists in Brussels.
NATO innovation competition
Vyshnivskyi said that NATO has a competition called the Innovation Challenge.
"In general, NATO has an annual innovation cycle, and if during that annual cycle they do not find a solution, they turn to an innovation competition," he clarified.
According to the colonel, Ukraine drafted scenarios for how KABs (guided aerial bombs - ed.) are used and outlined the result it wanted to achieve. After that, 40 applications were received. Their evaluation was carried out by a jury of NATO experts and specialists from Ukraine who work on countering KABs.
"We ended up with three finalists. I cannot name the companies at this time. But we received an interceptor drone, we received a drone swarm. And as of today, we have artificial intelligence that we can load into any interceptor drone, and it will further guide the drones to the target,” Vyshnivskyi said.
Final tests of the interceptors
He clarified that the technology still needs refinement. Such solutions have already proven extremely effective against various Shahed-type drones. Final tests are scheduled for around October 20 at the Biscarrosse training range in France.
During the final tests, a company must confirm its tactical and technical characteristics on the battlefield.
"Gliding bombs will be launched, drones will be launched, and they will have to engage them," Vyshnivskyi said.
In response to a follow-up question about whether the goal was to find a way to counter KABs, the colonel stressed that the solution remains in need of development.
Vyshnivskyi added that the companies that developed these innovations are European‑Ukrainian.
Shooting down KABs
Earlier this year, in February, Russian forces attacked Zaporizhzhia with aerial bombs.
Afterwards, Yurii Ihnat, Head of the Communications Department of the Ukrainian Air Force Command, said that during the attack, Ukrainian forces managed to shoot down a KAB.
He noted that this is "not the first case" of Ukrainian defenders destroying guided aerial bombs.
Ihnat did not specify exactly how Ukraine shot down the KAB.
