Protection against drones—both aerial and naval—is the focus of this week’s newsletter.
While Russia is doubling down on jet-powered Shaheds and Ukraine is searching for effective countermeasures, Ukraine’s campaign in the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov is disrupting Russia’s export logistics. So far, Russia has been unable to implement sufficient measures to protect its vessels and other maritime assets.
In this edition:
Jet-Powered Shaheds and How Ukraine Plans to Counter Them;
Frontline Air Defence in Ukraine (based on the Ukrainian podcast);
Why Russia Still Cannot Counter Ukraine’s Naval Drones (based on the Russian podcast).
Thank you for reading and supporting my work!
Meanwhile, thanks to your donations to my drone fundraiser, I managed to purchase not one but two Mavic 3T drones for my friend’s unit. Here is their thank-you video!
Jet-Powered Shaheds and How Ukraine Plans to Counter Them
Russia has been using jet-powered Shahed/Geran drones against Ukraine for over a year. President Zelensky identified countering these threats as one of Ukraine’s most important priorities. These drones can reach speeds of up to 500 km/h, making them extremely difficult for Ukraine’s existing air defence solutions—including mobile fire groups and interceptor drones—to counter.
The use of jet-powered Shaheds is particularly dangerous in Ukrainian regions bordering Russia. A Geran-3 launched from Russia’s Belgorod region can reach Kharkiv in about 70 seconds, leaving air defence units even less time to respond than during an S-300 missile attack. Jet-powered drones targeting Kharkiv reach speeds of up to 450 km/h. This speed complicates detection: it appears on the radar, and a second later it is already somewhere else. The sound they produce in flight also resembles that of a missile.
At the same time, jet-powered Shaheds have many vulnerabilities.
They are highly unmaneuverable. The Russians have installed a powerful engine in the lightweight, almost paper-thin airframe of the old Shahed. It cannot withstand even very wide, multi-kilometre turns without losing a great deal of speed. It is precisely during these turns that Ukraine’s air defences often manage to intercept them.
So far, the flight patterns of the jet-powered variants resemble testing, possibly even without warheads. The enemy is still experimenting and learning.
There also appear to be launch-related problems. The launch process is evidently lengthy and technically complicated. While conventional Shaheds can be launched by the dozens simultaneously, the jet-powered variants are launched, at best, one at a time every half-hour. Their range is also relatively limited.
Marian Zablotsky, a former Ukrainian parliamentarian currently serving in air defence units, described jet-powered Shaheds as “a new challenge for which there is not yet an immediate, large-scale response.” Proposed solutions for countering such attacks already exist and have been submitted by several manufacturers.
A representative of Ukraine’s General Staff identified three main interception systems currently being developed by military innovators to counter this threat:
Interceptor drones — these operate at specific altitudes and speeds that are better “not disclosed publicly.” They also use specialized guidance algorithms designed to improve accuracy when pursuing a target from behind.
A fixed-wing platform capable of carrying other interceptors — these interceptors would accelerate to speeds of 500–700 km/h and operate at the altitudes used by Russia’s jet-powered Shahed drones (4–6 km, and up to 9 km). This option could become the most widely deployed because it is cost-effective and easy to scale.
A “smart” missile — described as a “new architecture built from inexpensive components,” capable of operating at altitudes of up to 6 km and ranges of up to 15 km.
If these solutions prove effective, the General Staff plans to combine them.
Jet-powered Shaheds are most dangerous when operated under real-time control through a mesh network, says Serhii “Flash” Beskrestnov, a former adviser to Defence Minister Mykhailo Fedorov and a current adviser to President Zelensky.
With support from BRAVE1 and the General Staff’s Main Directorate of Electronic Warfare, Ukrainian EW manufacturers are working on technologies designed to jam the mesh-radio control channels used by Shaheds.
The development of interceptors designed to counter this threat is gaining momentum in Ukraine.
The SPYS interceptor drone, presented by the Ukrainian company WIY Drones, has a maximum speed of 600 km/h, a range of 12 km, and a payload capacity of 0.3 kg. It is equipped with a target-guidance system and supports the integration of autonomous launch and deployment capabilities for reaching the target area.
SkyFall unveiled its new P1-SUN JetKiller interceptor, designed to counter jet-powered Shaheds. It can reach speeds of up to 370 km/h. It has undergone combat testing and has already destroyed more than a dozen jet-powered Shaheds.
According to Ukrainian experts, conventional Shaheds won’t disappear. They will be directed toward the line of contact and used much like artillery. They will also probably be employed more frequently against Ukraine’s western regions.
I track the latest innovations, including interceptor drones, in my weekly two-page newsletter, Ukraine Drone Brief, available to VIP subscribers.
Frontline Air Defence in Ukraine
In an interview with Militarnyi, the commander of the Ramses Air-Defence Drone Battalion discusses modern frontline air defence: how Ukrainian forces protect infantry from reconnaissance and strike drones, counter waves of Shaheds, and respond to the growing threat of jet-powered UAVs.
Here is my summary of their conversation.