UA drones production is well diversified: top10 producers have around 20-25k monthly production. It is like 30% of total production of 45-50k monthly. And even those 25k monthly are produced on different locations and facilities.
Next Schwerpunkt is FPVs with AI to minimize operator influence on “last mile”-75-100m to target
Could you pls tell us something about these new Russian ZAL-16 reconnaissance drones, which supposedly have a control and video range of about 40-50 km, and the transmission is very difficult to disrupt? Sources among volunteers dealing with drones and drone jamming systems indicate that this is a serious problem. This drones are intended to replace Orlans soon
Strictly speaking, there is no Artificial Intelligence and is not expected. We are talking about image recognition systems, the algorithms of which were developed 50 years ago, but only now the cheapness of computing resources makes it possible to put these systems even in a vacuum cleaner. The military had these capabilities much earlier; already in the late 70s there were microprocessors capable of performing such work. However, as the Russians say, “the cart is still there.” The use of image recognition for targeting is quite effective if these are images of buildings, terrain, and similar static objects. However, to do this, you must at least have these same images from the expected angles of the attack. For small-sized non-stationary targets, it would seem that everything is simpler: getting an image of a tank from any angle and entering it into the drone’s memory is not difficult, and recognizing such an object even if it is moving and maneuvering is also a solvable task. But once you throw a camouflage net over a tank, the possibility of machine identification becomes close to zero. At the same time, television guidance systems have been known since the 40s and, despite the development of electronic warfare, remain effective.
Many thanks to Don and Wild Hornets' Dima for this great article.
It's important to highlight that Wild Hornets are a 100% donation-funded charity. Their crowdfunded drones have destroyed or damaged an estimated $500 million of enemy equipment since starting operations a year ago.
Wild Hornets' high effectiveness was why they were chosen as the only FPV drone to get dedicated fundraising support by the well-known Ukrainian news site Censor.net, run by prominent military reporter and anti-corruption activist Yuri Butusov. A Censor.net editor sits on the Wild Hornets board.
Many thanks for posting this!
UA drones production is well diversified: top10 producers have around 20-25k monthly production. It is like 30% of total production of 45-50k monthly. And even those 25k monthly are produced on different locations and facilities.
Next Schwerpunkt is FPVs with AI to minimize operator influence on “last mile”-75-100m to target
Perfect article, Tom&Don! Many thanks!
In Ukraine there is a society of volunteers printing parts for the military called DrukArmy https://drukarmy.org.ua/ua
Thank you for such a great support!
"uses infrared and is much cheaper than thermal optics" - Google reports that all thermal cameras are infrared cameras.
Thanks for this inside tour on a very interesting subject. Ukraine is truly a nation in arms.
Thanks Tom I found this to be very interesting
Could you pls tell us something about these new Russian ZAL-16 reconnaissance drones, which supposedly have a control and video range of about 40-50 km, and the transmission is very difficult to disrupt? Sources among volunteers dealing with drones and drone jamming systems indicate that this is a serious problem. This drones are intended to replace Orlans soon
And they work with Ukranian company SWD (Shock Wave Dynamics) for new FPV adapted warheads
Both anti personel and anti armor
https://twitter.com/wilendhornets/status/1773095867123163486
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/GJvD2SQXQAA2dlF?format=jpg&name=large
Strictly speaking, there is no Artificial Intelligence and is not expected. We are talking about image recognition systems, the algorithms of which were developed 50 years ago, but only now the cheapness of computing resources makes it possible to put these systems even in a vacuum cleaner. The military had these capabilities much earlier; already in the late 70s there were microprocessors capable of performing such work. However, as the Russians say, “the cart is still there.” The use of image recognition for targeting is quite effective if these are images of buildings, terrain, and similar static objects. However, to do this, you must at least have these same images from the expected angles of the attack. For small-sized non-stationary targets, it would seem that everything is simpler: getting an image of a tank from any angle and entering it into the drone’s memory is not difficult, and recognizing such an object even if it is moving and maneuvering is also a solvable task. But once you throw a camouflage net over a tank, the possibility of machine identification becomes close to zero. At the same time, television guidance systems have been known since the 40s and, despite the development of electronic warfare, remain effective.
Many thanks to Don and Wild Hornets' Dima for this great article.
It's important to highlight that Wild Hornets are a 100% donation-funded charity. Their crowdfunded drones have destroyed or damaged an estimated $500 million of enemy equipment since starting operations a year ago.
Wild Hornets' high effectiveness was why they were chosen as the only FPV drone to get dedicated fundraising support by the well-known Ukrainian news site Censor.net, run by prominent military reporter and anti-corruption activist Yuri Butusov. A Censor.net editor sits on the Wild Hornets board.
Find out more on the Wild Hornets website: dykishershni.com/en.html