Ukrainian military receives Czech FPV drones built from captured Russian tech
Czech company supplies Ukraine with FPV drones based on captured Russian UAVs (photo: Getty Images)
A Czech company, in cooperation with volunteers, is supplying Ukraine with fiber-optic FPV drones developed using technology from intercepted Russian unmanned aerial vehicles, Idnes reports.
The new FPV drone, named Jan Žižka, was named after the famous Czech military commander. The device uses fiber-optic communication, making it resistant to electronic warfare, and its cost is three times lower than that of comparable models.
The drone was developed by the Czech company SPARK, which used Russian technology as a basis. Ukrainian military personnel handed over a captured drone called Prince Vandal Novgorodsky, which also operated via fiber optics, to volunteers. Company engineers studied the device in detail and created a new model, Jan Žižka, based on it.
The vast majority of components are manufactured in Czechia: a green fiberglass body, supports printed on a 3D printer, as well as batteries and optical spools up to 25 kilometers long.
Thanks to funding from the public initiative Darek pro Putina, the company was able to establish mass production of the drones.
Assistance from Czech volunteers
In October, the organizer of the Gift for Putin initiative, Martin Ondráček, reported that Czechs collected about 595,000 dollars in 48 hours to purchase a Flamingo missile for Ukrainian defenders.
Earlier, a national campaign called Charlie One was launched in Czechia to raise funds for interceptor drones for Ukraine. It was supported by the Chief of the General Staff of the country's army, Karel Řehka.
