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In the last twelve months what We have been counting: In Ukraine, war has transformed to the nation becoming a catalyst for a war industrial revolution Unexpected It has ceased to be a utopia to think of Kyiv for those nations that want drones. Therefore, the contest, full of paradoxes, offers us one more than anyone saw: they have so many combat drones and so varied that they are an advantage, but also a problem at the same time.
Innovation to adversity. The technological history of Ukraine, marked by ingenuity and resilience since Soviet times, explains its current prominence in the field of defense. In 1951, on the outskirts of Kyiv, Ukrainian engineers developed one of The first computers from Europe in a bombarded building without access to Western publications.
This spirit of innovation in isolation, documented in THE BOOK INNOVATION IN ISOLATIONhas endured until today, feeding the emergence of companies such as Grammarly or Ajax, and supporting resistance to Russian invasion.
A war revolution. Faced with the Russian invasion, Ukraine has mobilized not only its army, but also its software engineers and developers, who have transformed commercial technology accessible into Effective Combat Systems. From Kamikaze drones Even inhibitor inhibitors of digital signals and platforms Like Delta (which offers real -time tactical vision), Ukrainian solutions arise from improvised workshops and laboratories to the very trenches.
Volume, speed and adaptability. In a context where powers like China and Russia They increase their bet For drones, Ukraine has been outlined as An indispensable partner For the western world. Last year, according to Anton Verkhovodov, partner of the Capital Signature D3the country secretly assembled near two million drones In scattered workshops, something unprecedented even within NATO. The advantage does not lie only in the volume, but in the speed of the innovation cycle: it is estimated that in less than a month A new drone can be deployed in the front and, shortly after, face Russian electronic countermeasures, forces it to iterate and improve tirelessly.
This adaptation capacity exceeds the development and proof times of Western Defense Contractors, which can It takes years in bringing a new design system to the battlefield. For Rafael Lossof the European Board of Foreign Affairs, this makes Ukraine an ideal partner, both for his tactical knowledge and for his agile and contextualized production capacity.
National Autonomy. They counted in Insider that this decentralization has given rise to a kind of “spilled toolbox”, in which countless models, types and technologies coexist. This strategy responds not only to the tactical urgency of facing the Russian invasion, but also to The need for independence in defense, in view of the unpredictability of Western support, especially from the United States.
A fact to understand it: in 2024, 96% of 1.5 million drones Acquired by Ukraine were of local production, which shows the solidity of this emerging industrial capacity and its strategic relevance.
Flexible supply and adapted to combat. Thanks to this fragmented model, Ukraine has achieved something exceptional: Transfer technology and products from manufacturers directly to the battle frontwithout going through traditional military acquisition structures. Many units obtain their drones through collective financing campaigns, and use civil models adapted to military use.
This flexibility allows rapid feedback between operators and manufacturers, optimizing the performance of the equipment and adapting them to the changing demands of the fight. Dimko Zhluktenkoa member of the Ukrainian unmanned systems forces, it emphasizes that it has used multiple drones (99% Ukrainians) from different companies, and that diversity is a tactical advantage over the uniformity of Russian arsenal, much more predictable.
Advantages. Unlike Russia, which uses a limited number of drones types, the Ukrainian variety complicates the work of detection, neutralization and counterattack of the enemy. According to The expert James Patton Rogersif Ukraine used only a handful of standardized models, Russia could quickly learn to intercept them by electronic war.
However, when facing drones of multiple signatures, configurations and capacities, the Russian forces face a Much more steep learning curve. In addition, the geographical dispersion Production makes Russia identify and destroy key manufacturing centers, something that would be possible with a more centralized model. The competition between manufacturers National also encourages an accelerated career of innovation, with the development of drones guided by artificial intelligencesystems Without GPS, Submarine drones and unmanned land vehicles.
Too much. The rhythm of consumption and destruction of drones in the front It is very high. Samuel Bendett, Del Center for Naval Analysishe pointed out that No one foresaw The quickly these technologies would be used, nor the speed with which they would develop countermeasures. Given this reality, Ukraine has opted for the quantity of quality, with an ambitious acquisition plan of 4.5 million drones in 2025.
Logic is simple: minimize costs, accelerate times of deployment and maintain tactical pressure by technological saturation. Benjamin Jensen, from Center for Strategic and International Studies, Describe this tactic As a kind of “war lego set”, where pieces of different origins are assembled with creativity, under the guidance of operators and experts around the world.
The great disadvantage. However, the worst of this huge drone industry that is raising Ukraine Alexander Pyslar explainedPeloton commander of attack drones, who warned that the diversity of manufacturers represents a constant and unprecedented operational challenge: each model requires adjustments, calibrations and specific training in a scenario where time seems not to exist.
This implies that many of the drones received are not sufficiently proven in battle conditionsunlike what would happen with a centralized acquisition strategy with standardized models. Rogers coincides: the quality of the results in the field It varies widelyand the operators must become experts on multiple platforms to use them effectively at an impossible time for it. No doubt, this approach also generates problems of interoperability, maintenance and logistics, key elements in a prolonged combat environment.
The drone as the protagonist. In what there are no doubt is in The importance that have acquired these war machines despite their limitations. The drones They have transformed All aspects of combat in Ukraine: from recognition, direct attack, mines, evacuation of injured, to assisted land combat.
The need to preserve human lives in the midst of the conflict has turned these devices unmanned into vital tools to compensate numerical or fire disadvantages. In Words of an operator of the Ukrainian front, the strategy is clear: “to have as many drones as possible” to avoid unnecessary casualties and maximize the power of action on all fronts.
Chaos and disorganization, apparently, for a radical form of technological adaptation to an asymmetric conflict.
Image | DRONLIFE, Armyinform, PicrylMaxim Subotin
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