When CNA visited a testing site, members of the Ukrainian Volunteer Army were seen putting a do-it-yourself (DIY) drone through its paces.
A member of the Ukrainian Volunteer Army’s Caligula Tactical Group, who goes by the military callsign Sambist, said: “We test new drones – if they flew (and) if everything was okay. Some of them are just from the workshop. We test their flight distance and their condition.”
But crudely assembled drones can be a hit and miss, especially their video feed, and this can affect Ukraine’s ability to attack Russian positions on the frontline.
“The hit rate is about 70 per cent,” he said, adding that the drones can fail in various conditions, including the jamming of electronic warfare.
For now, Ukraine wants to open up a new frontier in drone warfare, and is prepared to spend more than US$1 billion this year to upgrade its drone capabilities.
