The Ukrainian Defense Forces are facing a shortage of FPV drones, which are used more than other weapons to strike the army of the aggressor country, russia.
BBC News writes about this with reference to servicemen of the Ukrainian Defense Forces.
According to the military, the provision of UAV units with new drones is carried out according to the “30/30/30” scheme. That is, they receive a third of the drones from the Ministry of Defense, a third from volunteers, and another third they buy themselves.
It was emphasized that in recent months, drone deliveries from the Ministry of Defense have slowed down significantly.
The military say that the main reason for the delay is bureaucratic delays and the principle by which drones are purchased.
“It looks like this: today we have money, because our partners gave it, we ordered it, but what we ordered will be in the troops in two months,” said Yurii Fedorenko, commander of the 429th separate UAV regiment.
The commander of the unmanned systems battalion of the 58th separate motorized infantry brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Serhii Varakin, also confirmed to the publication that there is a shortage of FPV drones at the front.
According to him, a year ago his fighters could afford to use 100 FPV drones. At the same time, those drones were of "more or less" normal quality.
"Now, our brigade can receive only 200-300 FPV drones per month on orders," Varakin said.
The officer emphasized that the monthly need of his unit is 2,200-2,500 FPV drones.
The ability of the military to purchase drones independently allows the emergence of a critical situation.
The military also said that in recent months the quality of drones that are supplied to the troops has noticeably declined. Often, UAV operators have to buy individual parts with their own money to replace low-quality components.
"I want to take it out of the box and fly it. And not take it to the workshop and make it a "Frankenstein" so that it flies somewhere," Varakin noted.
As Ukrainian News Agency earlier reported, in February, the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine announced that in 2025 UAH 44 billion would be allocated for the purchase of FPV drones.
In March of this year, the department reported that in 2025 it is planned to purchase 4.5 million FPV drones.
Who we are: About us, Contacts. How we write news and our principles: Editorial code. We did our best. If you found this valuable – please support us.
To request a correction, please send an email.