April 10, 2024
Iran has sold thousands of drones to Russia for bombing Ukrainian cities, and another 6,000 drones are to be produced in the Alabuga special economic zone under an Iranian license. Meanwhile, Ukraine is purchasing drones in much larger quantities to fire at enemy front-line positions from Russia’s other partner, China.
Ukraine has found ways to acquire tens of thousands of drones, as well as establish a flow of spare parts for them from China, writes The Wall Street Journal. We mainly purchase finished products, primarily from SZ DJI Technology, from stores and suppliers. In addition, Chinese components are used in self-produced drones, which are growing at a rapid pace.
According to Georgiy Tskhakai, defense adviser at the Ministry of Digital Transformation of Ukraine, over the past year and a half, the number of drone manufacturers in the country has grown from seven to almost 300. Hundreds of thousands of simple, cheap devices that can carry explosives are produced in artisanal and industrial ways.
Every month, the Ukrainian Armed Forces use about 10,000 drones on the battlefield. DJI told the WSJ that it tries to limit the military use of its products, but cannot control their use after purchase.
The US ban on the use of DJI drones for the military, as well as Chinese components in principle in the production of their own drones, has become one of the reasons why American drones are too expensive. Although the United States has tried to establish supplies to Ukraine, many American commercial drones cost tens of thousands of dollars more than Chinese models. Ukraine would like to test and use more American drones, but “we are still looking for more cost-effective solutions,” Deputy Minister of Digital Transformation Georgy Dubinsky told WSJ.
Additionally, every drone software update requires Pentagon approval. However, the situation on the battlefield changes so quickly that programmers and engineers have to constantly make adjustments to their models. “What flies today will not be able to fly tomorrow,” says Dubinsky. “We need to quickly adapt to emerging technologies. The innovation cycle in this war is very short.”
In the United States, several hundred startups are developing small drones, some of them supported by the Pentagon. But devices intended for commercial use (which is what manufacturers primarily do) have proven difficult to convert for military purposes. As a result, the US does not have a significant presence in the first ever drone war.
American drones are expensive, glitchy, poorly resistant to electronic warfare, and are not always able to complete the mission and perform the task in accordance with the stated parameters, startup leaders and former military personnel in the United States, drone operators on the front lines and officials in Ukraine told the WSJ.
“The general reputation of each class of American drone in Ukraine is that they do not perform as well as other systems,” admitted Adam Bry, CEO of the Silicon Valley startup Skydio, which sent hundreds of its best drones to Ukraine early in the war. But its devices were “not very successful on the front line,” he said.
Since then, Skydio employees have traveled to Ukraine 17 times, and the new drones are built based on the views and needs of the Ukrainian military and security forces, rather than Pentagon requirements, Bry says.
Large companies such as Palantir and Microsoft, several American billionaires, as well as startups and entrepreneurs in North America, Europe and Australia are helping Ukraine develop drones and software for them, The Washington Post writes.
To donate for drones ($ and Euros)
Euro-card SEPA
Account number (IBAN): GB66CLJU00997187595264
BIC: CLJUGB21
Account Holder Name: HONCHAROV DMYTRO
TIN (Taxpayer Identification Number): 3188321450
Bank: Clear Junction Limited
Bank address: 15 Kingsway, London WC2B 6UN
PayPal: dmytgonc@gmail.com (leave the comment: “for fpv-drones”)
Who would’ve guessed? The chinese like to do business, no matter with whom. And there’s nothing mafia land can do about it. Call it a sort of poetic justice.
To end this horror, Ukraine must kill orcs at a rate of 2000/day.
It must be done quickly, by any means necessary.
Two million high quality attack drones would help the defenders a lot. Especially as nothing else useful is coming through for Ukraine.
But, but, but … what about those million shells that were promised since February???
Sorry if this is a bit off topic.
Republicans pick defense hawk to usher spending bills
Cole also favors Ukraine aid and has consistently voted in favor of it, though Trump and a growing number of Republicans oppose additional assistance for Kyiv.
https://www.defensenews.com/congress/2024/04/10/republicans-pick-defense-hawk-to-usher-spending-bills/
Seems like a growing number of Republicans are dropping the guise of being Republicans and exposing their fascism.