Russia imported Iranian Shahed 136 drones during the early months of the war against Ukraine in 2022. Moscow attempted to get the upper hand in the drone war against Ukraine, using new inexpensive drone technology to attack Ukrainian cities.
However, now it is Moscow that is concerned about the Ukrainian drone threat. According to Russian state media on Tuesday, Russian airports are now being equipped with more counter-drone systems.
Ukraine has used drones against Russia, including for long-range attacks, and on the frontline. The increase in the use of drones, from small quadcopters to larger UAVs, is part of the way the Ukrainian war is showcasing how the future of war will look.
However, both Ukraine and Russia don’t have access to the most expensive drone systems. Russia has always had a paucity of drones and Ukraine has had to improvise.
Moscow is worried
Nevertheless, Moscow is worried, as the Russian state media report indicates. According to an official, “such measure is considered as part of the federal project for the development of infrastructure, security, and development of a specialized certification system for unmanned aerial systems,” Tass media said.
“More than thirty Russian airports are planned to be outfitted with drone detection and countermeasure aids, department head of the Federal Air Transport Agency (Rosaviatsiya) Sergey Martynenko said at a press conference,” the Tass report noted.
The Russian official went on to note, “It is planned within the framework of this task [air transport infrastructure support] to outfit thirty-one airports with technical aids of detection and countermeasures against unmanned aerial vehicle and provide infrastructure information security systems.”
Russia’s investment in counter-drone systems is a setback for Moscow and an admission that although Ukraine has found it difficult to make gains in offensives this year, Russia is still forced to contend with new Ukrainian threats. Kyiv has innovated in the use of unmanned vessels in the Black Sea and various types of drones at the front.
Source » jpost