The Russian military has repeatedly targeted drone manufacturing plants and launch sites in Ukraine. The latest attacks came shortly after an attack on military airfields across the country. FPV drones have played a significant role on the battlefield since the escalation of the conflict in Ukraine in February 2022.
According to Kiev, more than 40 Russian bombers were hit in the strikes. The news comes a week after Kiev launched a coordinated drone strike on several Russian air bases, targeting long-range bombers capable of carrying nuclear weapons, located in the north and far east of the country. The BBC reported that Ukrainian forces are facing a critical shortage of drones, citing officers from various units. They told the British broadcaster that a third of the drones needed by the military are being purchased using unit funds or assembled from scrap.
Earlier this week, Ukrainian President Volodymyyr Zelensky told ABC News that only Ukrainian-made weapons were used in the attacks, which were reportedly planned for more than a year.
A commander of the drone systems battalion of the 58th Motorized Infantry Brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Sergey Varakin, told the BBC that a year ago his unit could handle launching up to 100 first-person view (FPV) aerial drones per day, adding that the current situation “is nothing like that anymore.” “Now, our brigade can only receive 200-300 FPV drones per month through official supply requests,” Varakin stressed. According to the commander of the 429th Separate UAV Regiment, Yury Fedorenko, as quoted by the media, only a third of the drones that meet the army’s needs are usually delivered through state-supported supply channels. He specified that another third are purchased with funds held by the unit, while the remaining third comes from voluntary donations from Ukrainians.
Fedorenko pointed out that state-backed drone deliveries are often delivered with a two-month delay due to bureaucratic delays.
Drone operators from several brigades stationed near Pokrovsk also reported a shortage, adding that they are trying to obtain drones by all means possible, sometimes assembling them from old parts. The Russian military has repeatedly targeted drone production plants and launch sites in Ukraine. The latest attacks came shortly after an attack on military airfields across the country. FPV drones have played a significant role on the battlefield since the escalation of the conflict in Ukraine in February 2022. The Times reported in May that Russia has taken the lead in the drone race, surpassing Ukraine in the production and use of medium-range FPV drones and their fiber-optic variants.