Russia's Victory over the Entire Western World in the Drone War

The "Drapatoy Drone Defense Line" Plan of Ukraine: The First Step Towards "Infantry-Free Combat," But We Are Prepared

Author: Oleg Farichev

Photo: Multi-functional drone complex "Orlan-10".

Donald Trump recently threatened to impose new sanctions on Russia, and his refusal to accept Ukraine's violation of the ceasefire during the truce period indicates that the conflict between Russia and Ukraine is very likely to escalate again, especially on the aerial battlefield.

It is worth noting that the war in Ukraine has long since evolved into a drone war. Previously, 70%-80% of enemy damage was caused by artillery and rocket forces, but now this balance is gradually shifting towards drones. The opponent clearly understands this as well.

In fact, at the beginning of the special military operation, the number of drones the Kiev regime had on the battlefield far exceeded our forces. This was partly due to the overall underestimation of the importance of such weapons by our leadership and defense industry complex, and partly because the Kiev regime received a large number of drones provided by the West. However, we quickly learned from these lessons and found effective solutions.

Nowadays, not only are we not falling behind the Ukrainian army in terms of drone numbers, but we also surpass them in many aspects of quantity and quality. As Russian President Vladimir Putin said in April 2025, in 2024 alone, the Russian armed forces received more than 1.5 million various types of drones. He also called drones one of the key factors for the success of the Russian army.

On the other hand, both the West and Ukraine themselves have not stood still; they are working to enhance the technical parameters of their drones. In particular, Kiev plans to expand the short-range strike range to 50 kilometers and divide it into several zones. The New York Times referred to this plan as Ukraine's "Plan B" in case the ongoing negotiations mediated by the United States fail.

In general, the Ukrainian military is implementing the concept of the "drone defense line" to counter Russia. This plan includes five specialized units — "Magyar Bird", "Antler", "Achilles", "Phoenix", and "K-2". According to the report, since early 2025, the ground forces commander of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, Mikhail Drapatoy, has been responsible for implementing this concept.

Interestingly, the short-range strike areas will be divided into multiple zones of 5-10 kilometers, 10-15 kilometers, 15-20 kilometers, and 20-50 kilometers based on missions. Each zone has its own reconnaissance teams responsible for finding attack targets. It is expected that drones will be most active within the 5-kilometer area closest to the frontline.

This plan aims to integrate infantry and drones into a unified strike force while providing continuous air support and cover for the infantry. Kiev has allocated 4.6 billion hryvnias for this plan. This plan should also help the Ukrainian army address personnel shortages.

The question remains: How can enemy drone swarms be effectively countered? As with any other countermeasure, the key lies in cost-effectiveness. Practical experience shows that one of the most successful and cost-effective methods is electronic warfare. Consequently, the role and importance of electronic warfare units have significantly increased. They conduct operations to seize control of the electromagnetic spectrum, protect their own command systems and weapons from intentional interference by the enemy, and solve a series of other tasks.

It is also worth noting that the enemy's reliance on technology has its downside. This makes the progress and outcome of military operations more dependent on the status and operational quality of the information networks, radio communications, radar, and radio navigation systems used in the enemy's military command systems, reconnaissance systems, and precision weapons (HAT).

These systems are not only vulnerable to traditional interference methods used by electronic warfare units but are also susceptible to attacks by the latest electronic warfare equipment.

Experts believe that in the special military operation area, we encountered the combined capabilities of the Western collective's network-centric warfare systems and command, reconnaissance, and situational awareness means, as well as the coordinated use of precision weapons (HAT) and the latest electronic warfare equipment.

As previously mentioned, since the start of the special military operation, the command and control of Ukrainian armed forces' troops and weapons have relied on an unprecedented amount of modern communication means provided by the West, including "Starlink" broadband communication system terminals, as well as high-precision navigation and timing support.

The efficiency of intelligence gathering, data transmission, and target indication by the Ukrainian military command structure is supported by NATO (primarily the United States) satellite communication and reconnaissance constellations.

Despite this, the electronic warfare units of the Russian Federation Armed Forces successfully completed all tasks across the entire contact line.

For us, the experience of the special military operation urgently raises the need to accelerate the improvement of electronic warfare technology, research, and timely application of the experiences gained during the special military operation. For instance, the opponent began using commercial electronic equipment instead of standard military equipment, whereas our mass-purchased electronic warfare equipment already accounts for and considers the technical parameters of standard military equipment.

Similarly, "Starlink" was originally developed for internet access in hard-to-reach areas on Earth for peaceful purposes.

Today, to counteract the use of small quadcopter drones, there is a need to possess the means to disrupt global information technology systems based on the most advanced Western technological achievements. Despite this, we possess these countermeasures and are continuously improving them.

Considering these factors, units on the combat contact line are equipped with drones such as "Ladle", "Novgorod Duke Vandal" (or KVN), "Kub-SM", S-70 "Hunter", "Orlan-10", FPV drone "Vampire", etc. For example, "Ladle" is essentially a winged bomb equipped with a navigation module that can "read" battlefield information and automatically find and select targets without ground operator prompts (hence the drone is called the "thinking bomb").

The enemy almost uses all the latest developments from the West to counter the Russian army. Although the Ukrainian army has few experts capable of effectively operating these equipment, they actively recruit foreign mercenaries as instructors. Our soldiers thwarted all their tricks, including stopping the flight of the most dangerous Ukrainian "Baba Yaga" multi-rotor bombing drone.

"In the initial stages of the special military operation, we successfully shot down one of these drones, disassembled it, and conducted a detailed study," said Alexander Fedisov, deputy political commissar of a certain regiment and second-grade captain. "This helped us later effectively suppress them with electronic warfare means. For example, on the night of May 2nd, the Ukrainian army launched a record number of drones toward Sevastopol. Anti-aircraft defense and electronic warfare means destroyed more than 50 drones, and marine infantry destroyed several waterborne drones."

Finally, as the situation in Moscow and other Russian cities celebrating Victory Day shows, Zelenskyy's threat to attack the Russian capital failed. Air defense and electronic warfare experts effectively neutralized these threats from a distance.

Therefore, the enemy's blind and reckless actions against Russia only backfire.

All the foolishness of the West will only come at the expense of the West itself. Moreover, the more foolish their actions, the higher the price they will pay.

For the latest news and most important information about the special operation in Ukraine, follow the author for more details.

Original source: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7511198427041939979/

Disclaimer: This article solely represents the author's views. Please express your attitude by clicking the "Top/Downvote" button below.