Military technology in the Ukrainian war is now developing faster than perhaps at any time since World War II. One of the fastest developing areas of military technology are drones, i.e. unmanned aerial vehicles.
Ukraine already had a strong aviation industry before the war, which also manufactured drones. Shortly after the start of the war, small airplane enthusiasts have also started developing aircraft of different sizes. Several startup companies have emerged in the country, developing drone technology for various purposes.
At the same time, all the world’s largest military powers are developing their own drones.
Head teacher of Air Force Training at the National Defense University (MPKK). Tomi Lyytinen says that the development of Western Drones is very advanced. They are getting features that could revolutionize warfare.
The advantages of drones compared to human-controlled aircraft are, among other things, that they can fly continuously for dozens of hours without the need for rest breaks. They also withstand difficult conditions, such as G-forces, better than humans.
One of the most significant future capabilities of Drones is the ability to counter ballistic missiles. According to Lyytinen, such airplanes are being developed in Western countries.
See here how an anti-ballistic missile drone would work. Go to the next picture by clicking the arrow.
The principle of these Drones is that they are on duty high in the atmosphere. When radar surveillance detects an approaching ballistic missile, the drone fires at the missile with its own interceptor missile.
A combat drone on standby in the air saves a little time compared to combat missiles fired on the ground, when the target is a ballistic missile approaching at multiple times the speed of sound.
The cost of drones as a problem
Western countries have offered armed support to Ukraine, but the large and most technically advanced Western aircraft have hardly been seen. However, Lyytinen believes that they will also be tested in Ukraine.
– Westerners [droonit], where the technology is more advanced, are also more expensive. Ukraine does provide a good testing ground for what works and what doesn’t on the modern battlefield, but this [hinta] is probably one of the reasons why they have not been seen in large numbers, says Lyytinen.
One of the lessons learned from Ukraine seems to be that in war you need cheap, simple drones en masse, which you can afford to lose in large numbers, says Lyytinen.
Ukraine has its own drone production, but rapidly emerging startup companies have become an important help.
Fast development work
One of the most prominent drone companies that supported Ukraine is originally Russian by Mikhail Kokorich founded in 2021 by Destinus.
The company’s head office is located in Switzerland, but it already has production in several European countries.
In an interview with , Kokorich says that his company already delivered hundreds of Lord-type attack drones to Ukraine during the war. They have probably carried out attacks on Russian oil refineries.
A big question in drone technology is the use of artificial intelligence. According to Kokorich, the cheap and simple Lord drones are already fully controlled by artificial intelligence. A terrain map has been entered into their computers.
The plane’s sensors read the terrain in front of it and orient itself to its destinations without a GPS connection or without having to be controlled from the ground.
Lord drones do not choose their target or decide when to strike. However, autonomous decision-making power is coming to airplanes.
Kokorich says that this year his company will put into production a drone called Hornet, whose mission is to destroy other drones.
This is how a drone that destroys other drones works. Go to the next picture by clicking the arrow.
Hornets will have an autonomous goal search. So they find their target and decide to attack.
In Ukraine, the Hornets’ targets could be, for example, the slow Shahed drones used extensively by Russia. Hornets could also chase Russian reconnaissance drones that reveal, for example, the location of Ukrainian artillery.
MPKK’s Lyytinen also estimates that if the operational reliability of artificial intelligence is reached to a sufficient level, autonomous decision-making power will come to the drones in use in Ukraine within 1–2 years.
Kokorich’s company is also developing the Destinus G drone, which he says will be put into production within 3-5 years. It would be a fully artificial intelligence controlled device that could replace a human piloted fighter in at least some combat missions.
Destinus G could repel missiles flying at several times the speed of sound or act as a “faithful wingman” for a manned fighter, in other words, to carry out, for example, riskier attack operations.
Similar fighter drones controlled by artificial intelligence are under development in many countries. A test program is also underway in the United States, where the F-16 fighter is controlled by artificial intelligence instead of a pilot.
Satikutia to Finland
Kokorich previously worked as a technology entrepreneur in Russia, but moved to the West in 2021. Kokorich has opposed Vladimir Putin politics and supported opposition forces, for example Mikhail Khodorkovsky. At the beginning of this year, he renounced his Russian citizenship.
After founding a company in Switzerland that exports drones to Ukraine, Kokorich believes he is at the top of the Russian secret service’s murder list.
Kokorich says he is ashamed for the Russians, but blames the West, including Finland, for Putin’s rise.
– When it became clear that Putin was abolishing human rights, you Westerners, you Finns, licked his money. You accepted [Putinia lähellä olevan liikemiehen Gennadi] Timchenko and others. You are to blame for Putin more than the Russians!
In Finland, a center of expertise for digitalization and cyber defense is being developed in Riihimäki. They are also trying to attract companies like Destinus there.
Kokorich says he is interested in the project because Finland would have a lot to offer the industry.
Still, according to him, Riihimäki’s project has mostly been at the level of speech. Destinus has contacted the Finnish Ministry of Defense, but has not received a response.
According to Kokorich, who promotes his company, the Finnish Armed Forces invests in old-fashioned weapons, such as Patria’s armored vehicles and fighter jets.
– You should think about what is really needed, because soon Russia will produce tens of thousands of drones every year.