Armor can barely reach Ukraine’s front now—so robots drive and soldiers walk
Ukraine's frontline logistics are under strain from drone pressure, forcing soldiers to walk while ground robots take over the most dangerous runs.
Drones have forced armored vehicles away from Ukraine's front line, according to Denys Perch, a Ukrainian brigade commander. The constant drone activity has created a deep belt of danger, so far that pickups can no longer reach forward positions. Perch explains that his jammers cannot counter the fiber-optic drone, which poses a unique threat.
The ongoing conflict has turned into a race to protect soldiers from drones, as they make any movement near the front a target. While Ukraine continues to outpace Russia technologically, Russia promptly replicates advancements and overwhelms the front line with significant resources. Previously, armored vehicles transported supplies to logistics hubs near the front, but this is now nearly impossible.
When an armored vehicle appears, Russian forces view it as a target and swarm it with numerous drones and munitions. Perch would rather park his armored vehicle than have soldiers inside it. The expanding kill zone around the contact line has grown to 15-20 kilometers deep on busy sectors, making it take three days to reach some positions on foot.
Previously, soldiers primarily drove to their destinations and walked the remaining distance, but now they walk the entire way. Under Perch's command, Ukraine's Territorial Defense forces have climbed from the 22nd to the third position on the military's strike-results leaderboard, with ground robots handling logistics tasks that armored vehicles cannot.
These robots are responsible for thousands of supply and evacuation runs per month. Although Russia attempts to intercept drones with interceptors, Perch's brigade has developed ways to evade them by alternating between high and low flight paths. Perch believes robots will eventually move from supply runs into combat, targeting Russian troops in their rear.
Ukraine aims for robots to perform 100% of frontline logistics, already achieving nearly 17,000 supply and evacuation runs in June. However, Perch emphasizes the need for a technical solution to counter the fiber-optic drones that his jammers cannot reach.
Written by urgent.news from Euromaidan Press's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
