20% to 70%: Ukraine’s National Guard rewired its drone war around cables
Fiber-optic drones trail a cable with no signal to jam—and now account for 70% of the drones the National Guard uses, up from about a fifth.
Ukraine's National Guard has transitioned its drone war tactics, now utilizing fiber-optic control for 70% of its drones, according to its commander Oleksandr Pivnenko. This significant shift—from around 20% fiber-optic to 70%—has made the drones some of the most effective weapons in the ongoing conflict. The change was not easy, as the National Guard had to grapple with cable quality and drone handling, but it has since mastered the technology for reconnaissance and strikes.
The force has doubled its number of interceptor-drone crews over the past six months, and plans to continue developing unmanned systems units as a top priority. The National Guard Agency has also issued its first competitive tenders for fiber-optic and deep-strike drones, bought to specifications set by the Defense Ministry.
Written by urgent.news from Euromaidan Press's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
