Illustrative image.
Russia is expanding production of jet-powered one-way attack drones while developing systems that use artificial intelligence (AI) to identify and attack targets independently, Ukrainian presidential adviser Serhii Beskrestnov said on October 29, warning that the technology could allow large numbers of drones to hunt targets without continuous operator guidance.
Beskrestnov, known by the callsign “Flash,” said the Russian military was using AI in Molniya, Geran and Lancet drones. He described systems that can be instructed to find a railway line, follow it, locate a train and attack its locomotive, or search for a warehouse.
“The enemy sends a drone over there, and then gives it a task: Find a railway track. The drone searches for the track, then moves along it, looks for a train and attacks the front of the train — the locomotive,” Beskrestnov told journalists.
“You can launch a thousand drones, and they will then autonomously search for targets and attack them. This is truly a terrible future,” he added.
Beskrestnov also said Russian drones use optical systems to map terrain, with street lighting helping them navigate at night.
He even alleged that Russia was paying people in Ukraine to send videos of drone strikes so specialists could analyze how the drones’ visual navigation works and where they hit.
Separately, Beskrestnov said Ukrainian forces had recorded Russian Geran-5 jet-powered drones reaching speeds of up to 1,000 kilometers per hour while maneuvering. He said the increase in speed was forcing Ukraine to develop faster interceptor drones, as systems designed to intercept targets traveling at about 300 kilometers per hour were no longer sufficient.
Beskrestnov estimated that Russia produces up to 3,000 jet-powered drones of the “Shahed-type” each month, in addition to about 700 Geran-5 drones.
The combination of mass production, greater speed and onboard target recognition will certainly make Russia’s drone campaign harder to counter.
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in other words, the goose that laid the golden egg for zelensky and his
co-rrupto-horts is cooked.
the future looks bright for big man zelensky he loves his country so much the job is not finished till he has all the eukrain men dead