AI as the future

Colonel: NATO not prepared for drone warfare

In the war in Ukraine, more than 60 percent of targets are destroyed by drones.

(Bild: APA/AFP/Genya Savilov)

According to a former commander of the Ukrainian army, NATO's armed forces are not prepared for modern drone warfare. "From what I see and hear, not a single NATO army is ready to resist the drone cascade," said Colonel Vadym Sukharevskyi.

He is the commander of the Unmanned Systems Forces, which were only recently formed. To stay ahead of the enemy, artificial intelligence (AI) and more ground drones are being used and lasers are being tested to shoot down Russian unmanned aerial vehicles.

Drones have an economic advantage as they often cost far less than the conventional weapons needed to shoot them down, said the commander. NATO should also recognize this. "This is simply elementary mathematics. How much does a missile cost to shoot down a Shahed? And how much does it cost to deploy a ship, an aircraft and an air defense system to shoot it down?"

Kamikazedrone

(Bild: stock.adobe.com)

Which drones are in use
The Russian military has been using Iranian-made Shahed attack drones against Ukraine for a long time. These are estimated to cost several tens of thousands of US dollars each. Long-range drones can cost just a few thousand dollars as the simplest means of deception, while interceptor missiles for air defense usually cost six or seven figures. Many countries have limited supplies, which makes their use highly uneconomical, according to Sukharevskyi.

The use of drones has increased enormously since the Russian attack on Ukraine. According to the country at war, 2.2 million small FPV drones and 100,000 larger long-range drones were produced last year. The enemy had estimated that it would have produced 1.4 million FPV drones by 2024.

More than half destroyed by drones
"Currently, even the commander-in-chief of the Ukrainian armed forces says that more than 60 percent of targets are destroyed by drones," said Sukharevskyi. The military is using pick-up trucks with mounted machine guns and military aircraft to shoot down drones more efficiently. Thousands of unmanned ground vehicles are already in use on the front line so that fewer soldiers have to enter dangerous areas.

Without drones, everything would be much worse. Drones allow us to react asymmetrically when the enemy is bigger, stronger and ready to attack.

Oberst Wadym Sucharewskyj

Overall, both sides make extensive use of electronic warfare in combat, for example to disrupt signal links to drones in the air. The drone is guided to the target with the help of AI. "Without drones, everything would be much worse. Drones allow us to react asymmetrically when the enemy is bigger, stronger and ready to attack," Sukharevskyi is convinced.