Ukraine developing strike drones to hunt Iranian-made Shaheds
Illustrative photo: Ukraine is developing a new type of attack drone (Getty Images)
Ukrainian engineers are developing new attack drones that will hunt down the Shahed drones. The drones operate as air defense missiles - they explode near enemy targets and hit them with debris, reports Bloomberg.
According to Oleksandr Kamyshyn, an advisor to the Minister of Strategic Industries, three domestic manufacturers produce such attack drones, which cost about $5,000 each. The developers do not rule out that the price of such attack drones may eventually drop to $300 per unit.
Developers in Ukraine are working on fixed-wing drones that engage drones in direct collision and other models for hitting air targets. For example, Skyfall, one of Ukraine's leading drone manufacturers, has modernized its FPV model to intercept UAVs. These drones are already being used at the front.
This type of drone is also being developed by European engineers. For example, the Latvian company Origin Robotics plans to send test drones to Ukraine in June that explode near enemy UAVs, destroying them with debris.
“Once it gets close enough to a target, a warhead detonates and the target is hit with fragmentation,” Origin CEO Agris Kipurs said at a conference on drone development in Riga.
According to him, such drones are specially designed to combat large barrage munitions.
Experts add that despite significant economic benefits for Ukraine, these drones are not able to completely replace air defense systems at this stage. Unmanned drone hunters have their limitations. They are not able to effectively counter Russian missiles, which are faster and more destructive than the Shaheds.
Drone production in Ukraine
Ukraine has brought the production of drones to a new level: the defense industry is currently capable of producing about 10 million drones annually, including those with artificial intelligence.
An effective proof of the use of AI drones is Operation Spiderweb, which put 34% of Russian strategic aviation out of action on June 1.
Amid the success of Ukrainian UAVs, Britain has announced that it will spend about $2.7 billion to develop drone technology using tactics developed during the war in Ukraine.
