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Ukraine’s drone units operate more like scrappy startups than traditional military units.
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The Wall Street Journal visited a battalion that was formed by unpaid civilians, but has evolved.
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The headquarters has workshops for engineers, a pilot training facility and a table tennis table.
Some drone units in Ukraine operate more like bold technology startups than military units, as they continue to play an outsized role in the country’s military defense.
According to a report from The Wall Street Journal, drone pilots are now the deadliest soldiers on the modern battlefield. And the way they operated is a far cry from traditional military approaches.
The Journal met with Clear Eyes, a drone battalion that started as unpaid civilian enthusiasts who relied on commercial drones to track Russian military movements.
The battalion headquarters now has engineering workshops, a pilot training facility and a table tennis table.
Meanwhile, the group is using homes in eastern Ukraine as bomb factories and engineering hubs to modify Soviet-era rocket-propelled grenades and upgrade Russian glide bombs to make larger munitions for their drones.
Heorhiy Volkov, 37, owner of a marketing agency that runs the battalion, sometimes gives the impression that he is leading a startup rather than a military unit, according to the Journal.
Volkov said the key to success is innovation, logistics and communication, as well as solid military tactics.
“One good pilot changes nothing,” he said, adding: “We are a team of civilians who want to kill Russians with our smarts and technology.”
The Journal reported that the majority of personnel in Ukrainian drone units have never served in the military before and largely ignore aspects of ranks, including saluting and waiting for orders.
Since launching Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022, Ukraine has turned to drones in an effort to give the country an edge over Russia’s larger military.
Ukraine has used drones to launch attacks on Russian ammunition depots and gas and oil facilities deep inside Russia, eroding Russia’s artillery advantage.
Earlier this year, the country used unconventional strategies and innovative naval technologies, including naval drones, to go after Russia’s Black Sea Fleet, forcing the country to move from its headquarters in Crimea.
In September, nighttime footage released by Ukraine showed “dragon drones” dropping molten material on Russian positions, likely as part of efforts to sow fear among Russian forces.
The Journal also interviewed Oleksandr Dakhno, a 29-year-old former director of a coworking space.
Dakhno is now a drone pilot who claims to have killed about 300 Russian soldiers in a year and a half and once flew a drone carrying a 9-pound bomb into a school auditorium where Russian soldiers were sheltering.
In October, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said his country can now produce 4 million drones a year and is ramping up production.
“In extremely difficult conditions of the large-scale war under constant Russian attacks, the Ukrainians were able to build an almost new defense industry,” he added.
Read the original article on Business Insider
