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1 of 3 Photo: Ukrainian military/AP/TT
It has been called the poor man’s version of a cruise robot. Small, with high precision and in groups capable of penetrating advanced air defenses. And above all cheap.
– Russia can afford a thousand times more drones than traditional cruise robots, says drone expert Tomas Melin.
First comes the sound. Then the explosions.
On video from Kyiv, the sharp buzz of unmanned craft seeking their targets can be heard. The sound of “flying mopeds” – the epithet the Ukrainians have given the allegedly Iranian-made drones – is a noise that in recent weeks has increasingly spread like a carpet of noise over Ukrainian everyday life.
At quarter to seven in the morning, the bang comes and the first column of smoke rises into the sky. Ukraine has once again been subjected to Russian drone attacks. This Monday morning, October 17, five people are killed in the capital, including a couple in their 30s who were expecting their first child.
Reminiscent of model airplanes
The transition from large, heavy cruise robots to simpler unmanned aerial vehicles means several advantages for the Russian side, says Tomas Melin, research leader and aviation technology expert at the Total Defense Research Institute (FOI). Above all, they are considerably cheaper – the price of a drone can be a couple of hundred thousand kroner, he says, while a single full-sized cruise robot can cost as much as 100 million.
– In terms of construction, the drones are more reminiscent of model airplanes. It’s something that almost any engineer can do in their garage at home. The problem is doing it on a larger scale.
– The disadvantage is the range and that you can’t bring as much explosives in each craft. In all parameters, the drones are weaker, but on the other hand, Russia can afford 1,000 times more. If it’s that cheap, you can shoot out 100 pieces and “see what happens”.
Apartments collapsed
Despite the limited amount of explosives, the drones can cause extensive destruction. Monday’s attack on an apartment building in Kyiv created a large hole in the concrete structure that led to the collapse of at least three apartments, according to the AP.
In addition, in practice, a truck, two people and some kind of launch pad are enough to get the drones off the ground. A cruise robot practically requires an entire air base, says Tomas Melin.
According to Ukraine and its allies, Russia is increasingly using Iranian-made Shahed-136 drones, rebranded in Cyrillic letters as Russian Geran-2, in attacks against Ukraine. Both Russia and Iran have repeatedly denied what Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyi calls “evil collaboration.” On Tuesday, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov stated that he “does not have any information about Russian purchases of Iranian drones.” But analysts worldwide are sure of their cause.
Sent out in swarms
– It is an Iranian construction from the beginning, but when you start looking at the parts, there are parts from all over the world in them. Certain batches may even have been produced in Russia – it is not uncommon to make license agreements to manufacture military equipment in other places, such as the Swedish Jas Gripen in Brazil, says Tomas Melin.
The latest reports claim that the drones are being sent out in “swarms”.
– If there is only one drone, it can be easy to shoot down, but if there are a hundred at the same time, it will be difficult for the defense. It is simply a way to increase efficiency.
For the Ukrainian part, the drone war requires rapid adaptation and flexibility, not least because the designs can be changed from one day to the next. Shooting down the drones with traditional means is also very expensive, says Melin.
– It may happen that it costs four million to shoot down a craft that cost 100,000 to produce. It will be an economy that you cannot afford.
Unmanned in the future
And the drone wars will continue. From FOI’s side, the researchers have for a long time seen the technological development moving increasingly towards unmanned craft.
– The systems will only get better and better, which will increase the pace of warfare. It might not be that much more bang per kilo, but the navigation and targeting systems will be better at navigating and finding the targets they’re after.
Facts
Shahed-136/Geran-2
The drones are – most likely – manufactured in Iran and are sometimes called “kamikaze drones”, as they function as flying bombs that are destroyed on impact.
Length: 3.5 meters.
Wingspan: 2.5 meters.
Weight: 200 kilos.
Motor: Mado MD550 or 3W.
Power: 50 hp/37 kW.
Range: Data varies, but maximum 250 miles.
Speed: 185 km/h.
Flight altitude: 60–4,000 meters above sea level.
Armament: The warhead is often equipped with a high-explosive explosive charge weighing 40–50 kilograms, which is designed to detonate on impact.
Source: BBC, CNN, The Sunday Times
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