A Ukrainian “army of drones” destroyed 116 armored vehicles and dozens of other Russian military assets in just one week, marking another milestone for its autonomous systems.
The country’s deputy prime and digital transformation minister Mykhailo Fedorov reported Wednesday that the fleet was able to neutralize 30 enemy tanks, 86 armored combat vehicles, and 113 special military vehicles starting April 2. It also destroyed 114 artillery pieces and 10 multiple launch rocket systems. Additionally, the drones heavily damaged six air defense systems, 11 pieces of radio and technical equipment, and 11 ammunition and fuel storage depots, according to Fedorov. At least 180 Russian casualties were also attributed to the recent attacks. “UAV (unmanned aerial vehicle) strike units, provided by the drone army, are hitting Russian equipment worth millions of dollars every week,” the minister said.
The idea of building an army of drones to counter Russian attacks was first floated in 2022 when Ukraine’s foreign allies and some charitable organizations poured out drone donations to the war-torn nation. Prominent drone manufacturers Baykar and AeroVironment were the first to deliver crowdfunded UAVs to Kyiv to provide more accurate and rapid reconnaissance. Ukrainian military official Col. Oleksii Noskov previously said the army of drones will help them constantly monitor a 2,470-kilometer-long (1,535-mile-long) frontline, which has seen heavy fighting. In September last year, one of the first major breakthroughs of the drone army was recorded, as Fedorov said it neutralized 200 Russian targets in seven days. Because of its apparent success against Moscow, Kyiv aims to increase the number of drones in the fleet to over one million. It also signified its intent to build an “army of robots” to support the operations of the drone army.
