Operation Spiderweb was just the beginning! The Ukrainian army is preparing strike drones in private houses a step away

Ukrainians are turning private houses into workshops for combat drones. Moreover, such workshops are very often located near the combat zone, writes El Pais.

In ordinary houses in the Donetsk region, which at first glance do not differ from others, work is being done inside that could decide the fate of the front. One of these bases, located not far from Pokrovsk, the Ukrainian military has turned into a real center for combat improvement of drones. No signs, no signals – but inside, work is in full swing, as civilian copters are being used to create new weapons against Russian troops.

The workshops, which are "growing like mushrooms", have become key to five UAV divisions that maintain defense on hundreds of kilometers of the front. Drones are delivered here by the state and volunteers — ordinary, commercial devices that are modified into combat ones in half an hour.

"Sometimes we deliver up to 100 drones, although usually there are about 20", says a soldier from the 68th brigade nicknamed "Flint".

In his makeshift laboratory there are 3D printers, soldering irons, motors, cables and boxes, and between them – a dozen people who create "kamikaze" and attack helicopters.

Most drones are FPV models that do not return after takeoff. Some of them are modified to drop explosives or transport cargo to hard-to-reach places. There are also larger devices with the ability to hit targets 20 km away.

This "garage workshop" works thanks to people who were office workers yesterday. Vadim is a former computer specialist from Khmelnytsky, Sergey is a former manufacturer of medical equipment, Durham is an infantryman, and now he is a drone pilot in the special unit "Achilles". "Flint" commented:

"This is a technological race. Russia has more resources, but we are faster and more flexible".

According to him, last year the drones were immediately sent to the front almost without any further modification. Now everyone is undergoing adaptation - the control system, the cameras, the signal - everything is set up manually, in the cramped rooms of ordinary houses.

One of the breakthroughs is drones that fly on an optical cable up to 30 km long. They do not need a radio connection, so they are more resistant to jamming. But so far, such developments are single, fragile and need improvement.

"We are working to facilitate the work of the infantry and save lives", adds Sergey.

And although the front currently runs for tens of kilometers, the situation can change at any time. They are already building fortifications next to the house-workshop: trenches, "dragon's teeth" and earthen embankments. But even under the threat of evacuation, these underground centers continue to work - because each assembled drone can change the course of the battle.