Key facts
- Russia plans to increase the proportion of jet-powered drones in its long-range attacks to 50%.
- Ukraine's commander in chief, Gen. Oleksandr Syrskyi, announced the shift in Russian drone tactics.
- Jet-powered drones are faster and more difficult to intercept than current propeller-driven Shaheds.
- Ukraine's air defense systems may struggle to counter the faster drones at scale.
- Ukrainian forces used interceptor drones to down 3,500 Russian drones in May.
Russia is reportedly planning to significantly increase its use of jet-powered Shahed drones, aiming for them to constitute 50% of its long-range attacks against Ukraine, according to Ukraine's commander in chief, Gen. Oleksandr Syrskyi. These turbojet-powered uncrewed systems, such as the Geran-3 and Geran-4, are considerably faster and more challenging for current Ukrainian air defense systems to intercept compared to the propeller-driven Shahed-136 drones that Russia has been using extensively. Syrskyi noted that the enemy is continuously evolving its UAV tactics, increasing both the quantity and quality of its drones. While he did not provide specific evidence, he stated that this shift presents new challenges requiring a timely response. Ukraine's current defense strategy involves a combination of electronic warfare, mobile machine-gun fire groups, interceptor missiles, and specialized interceptor drones. In May alone, Ukrainian forces reportedly used interceptor drones to take down 3,500 Russian long-range strike and decoy drones. However, the higher speeds of turbojet Gerans, potentially exceeding 300 mph, could overwhelm the capabilities of Ukraine's interceptor drones, which cost between $2,500 and $6,000 each. Ukrainian drone advisors have urged local manufacturers to focus on developing solutions specifically to counter these more advanced turbojet drones.