Ukraine's defence minister: interceptor drones and heavy-calibre turrets work against jet-powered UAVs

Ukrainian Defence Minister Yevhenii Khmara told journalists that Ukraine's forces are achieving results against jet-powered unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), which Russia uses in its war against Ukraine. According to him, interceptor drones and heavy-calibre turrets are being used for this, and the experience is being scaled up.

Interceptors and turrets

The minister gave an example in which one unit destroyed five aerial targets during a combat operation using five Bars interceptors, which he described as a 100% success rate. The experience is being studied and expanded, with additional experts and units joining the effort.

The number of heavy-calibre turrets in Ukraine's arsenal is already in the hundreds. This area is being scaled up, while longer-range systems are being developed at the same time.

Other means and future threats

Khmara said anti-aircraft missile systems and man-portable air-defence systems (MANPADS) are also proving effective. He said Ukraine is aware of the solutions Russia is developing, including jet-powered drones able to reach 800 km/h, and is preparing countermeasures against the next generation of threats.

He added that aviation remains one of the most effective ways to fight jet-powered drones. Its effectiveness keeps growing thanks to pilot skill and better coordination, which has reduced the munitions spent per aerial target. Plans call for improving this figure further.

Targeting drone operators

Khmara expressed the view that hunting Russian drone operators and ground infrastructure should become a distinct specialism. He explained that an ordinary brigade focuses mainly on the immediate threat in front of it, so specialised second-echelon units are needed, for which locating and destroying UAV crews is one of the priority tasks.