Russia is winning the drone race and its new FPV drones are changing the face of war, writes The Times, quoted by FOCUS.
The Russian Federation has taken the lead in the use of medium-range unmanned aerial vehicles - both standard FPVs and their new fiber-optic versions. These unmanned aerial vehicles are changing the very physics of the front line, combat tactics and psychology of the Ukrainian military. The logistics and vanguard positions of the Ukrainian armed forces are particularly hard hit.
According to the commander of a battalion with the call sign "Kuba" of the 13th brigade, the range of Russian FPV drones has increased by 4 km in the last week alone. Currently, the strike "Blizkavka-1" and "Blizkavka-2" successfully hit targets at a distance of up to 20 km - including logistics convoys near Kramatorsk.
The greatest threat is posed by the new optical FPV drones: they are controlled using a wire disconnected from a reel and are invulnerable to electronic warfare. This makes them practically invulnerable and extremely accurate: the signal is not jammed, and the video link is maintained until the moment of impact.
On the front line, drones have completely changed the conditions of war. Tanks and armored vehicles have become easy targets and have practically become useless, as the lieutenant says.
The gray zone - the neutral zone between positions - has expanded to 5-7 kilometers due to constant drone strikes. Now the infantry must land many kilometers from the front and move at night to avoid being spotted from the air, commented Stanislav from the 93rd brigade.
Evacuating the wounded has become almost impossible. One of the soldiers died of blood loss before he could be evacuated within five hours. The next day, five more vehicles were destroyed in the same sector.
The drone war requires lightning-fast adaptation and for now, Russia is the one setting the pace, the publication concludes.