Daily digest, 29 September 2026

Priority 1. UAVs, counter-UAV, military AI and new technologies in conflicts

Ukraine: Russian long-range strikes

update Geran-4 — a captured airframe was shown to American media: 8 km ceiling, MESH communications and SIM cards from operators in four groups of countries

The first public teardown of the jet-powered Geran-4 UAV (unmanned aerial vehicle) confirmed that it flies twice as high as piston-engined Gerans. A ceiling of up to 8 km puts it out of reach of most machine-gun mobile fire groups. The specimen was launched from Crimea and reached Lutsk. Speed is 450–500 km/h; according to the teardown, the Ukrainian military expects it to rise to 800 km/h source.

Communications on board are dual. The first channel is a MESH network modem (a mesh network in which each node relays its neighbors' signals). The second is ordinary SIM cards from operators in Russia, Ukraine, Belarus and unnamed EU countries. A cellular channel over someone else's infrastructure makes it possible to maintain control where there are no own relays.

The camera provides 10× optical and 32× digital zoom. The engines, according to the teardown, are assembled in Russia from Chinese components. Full localization of their production is expected as the next step.

update Geran-5 K5 — strike near the Yahodyn checkpoint on the border with Poland; a DSMAC navigator confirmed in the debris

The new modification of the jet-powered Geran has reached the far west of Ukraine for the first time. Russian channels write about a strike on a truck parking lot near the Yahodyn border crossing source. The Ukrainian version is different: the BBC, citing the State Border Guard Service, reports that the drone did not hit the checkpoint source, and Militarnyi says it fell a few hundred meters away source.

In the debris of one of the airframes, a DSMAC-type system (Digital Scene Matching Area Correlator — navigation by comparing the onboard camera frame with a preloaded terrain map) was found source. The Kh-101 cruise missile uses the same principle, so the line between the Geran-5 and a cruise missile continues to blur.

update Geran-5 — strikes on data centers of Ukrtelecom, Dream Line and Opendatabot; Ukraine's passport service and Diia are malfunctioning

The Russian campaign against data centers (DCs) has produced its first noticeable administrative effect. From September 28 to 30, passports are not being issued in Ukraine due to a failure of a telecom operator's equipment. The State Migration Service website is down, and some users cannot see documents in the Diia app source.

The strike summaries report hits on the Kyiv data centers of Ukrtelecom and Dream Line source. In Dnipro, a strike hit the office of Opendatabot — a platform that collects data from Ukrainian state registers and provides it via API source. According to a count by Russia's WarGonzo, more than ten data centers and provider offices were knocked out over the week source.

A Geran-5 hit the building of the National Academy of Sciences, next to which a server room is located. NAS Vice President for the military-industrial complex Volodymyr Horbulin was lightly wounded, and his assistant was killed source. Zelensky convened an emergency meeting of the war cabinet on protecting data centers source.

What is signal and what is noise. Yuri Baranchik, in a piece for TASS-Analytics, claims that on the night of September 26 the number of Ukrainian drone sorties fell from about 600 to 96 due to communication failures source. There is no confirmation. Already on the night of September 28 the Russian MoD itself reported 254 Ukrainian UAVs shot down, so if there was a dip, it was short-lived. Ukraine is meanwhile moving part of its data to foreign capacity.

Strikes on Kyiv: 155 in September versus 113 in August

The intensity of Russian strikes on the capital has been rising for the third month in a row. A Russian channel cites a count by a foreign OSINT analyst: 109 strikes in January, 21 in March, 113 in August and 155 in September. Logistics facilities accounted for 43% of targets hit source.

On September 28, from 06:30 to 16:30 Ukrainian time, more than 100 strike drones were launched, most of them at Kyiv. The AFU Air Force reported shooting down more than 40 jet-powered ones source. During the week of September 21–27, at least 1376 drones were launched source. Russia's UAVDEV notes that piston-engined Geran-2s are now also flying over Kyiv in swarms during the day. This is a sign that Ukrainian air defense has a problem intercepting targets of all types, not only jet-powered ones source.

Ukraine: intercepting jet drones

Prytula Foundation's jet interceptor — a Geran-5 hit at 425 km/h

The class of Ukrainian interceptor drones capable of catching jet targets is growing quickly. The Yastrub crew of the 1020th anti-aircraft missile and artillery regiment shot down a jet drone at a speed of 425 km/h and an altitude of more than 3 km. The interceptor was handed over under the "Yedynozbir. Chyste Nebo" program. The foundation has already contracted several manufacturers and is now scaling up production source.

ShrikeNews counts four interceptors with confirmed Geran-5 kills source:

• the "SBU one" — jet-powered, two interception videos;

• STING S — type not specified, two videos;

• SPYS — propeller-driven;

• the Prytula Foundation interceptor — jet-powered.

Russia's "Voenny Osvedomitel" showed a failed attempt by yet another jet interceptor: the detonation occurred far from the Geran source. The channel acknowledges that this is already the fourth such drone shown in ten days. The main engineering problem of the class so far is detonation accuracy at a high closing speed.

Ukraine: new tactics and carriers

A Starlink-equipped "mothership" aircraft covers Ukrainian strike drones and drops FPVs on Russian fire groups

The Ukrainian side has combined a carrier, video monitoring and an air defense suppression tool in a single vehicle. The Russian channel RuporOfBattle describes the scheme in the Kherson — Crimea direction source. A fixed-wing "mothership" flies behind the strike drones. When an MFG (mobile fire group) opens fire and thereby reveals itself, the operator drops an FPV drone (controlled with a first-person view) from the "mothership" and attacks the crew.

[TECH] The post breaks down the architecture. The base is a standard "Starlink plane" with a module for streaming HDMI video to the internet and control of the flight controller via Starlink and ELRS (ExpressLRS — an open radio control protocol). On top of that, boards for relaying FPV video and control have been added. The receivers carry "cloverleaf" antennas — short-range communication antennas. This points to the task of self-defense of the group rather than classic relaying deep into enemy territory.

The vehicle costs more than $20 thousand. An airfield team brings it to a road in a minibus. For Russian MFGs this means a new threat: now they have to watch not only the target but also an FPV coming from above.

update Hornet — operators of the 25th Brigade install Starlink instead of a relay, range 120–150 km

The Hornet strike drone is switching to satellite communications. The Russian KTsPN translated a Ukrainian report on the work of the 25th Separate Airborne Brigade. Starlink is installed on board instead of a bulky relay, which makes the vehicle lighter and the link more stable source.

The range is 120–150 km, i.e. to the Donetsk area and beyond. Assembling one kit takes 30–40 minutes. They work mainly at night using a thermal imager and hunt logistics. Before striking, operators make a second pass to weed out abandoned vehicles and decoys. Russia's Rubikon is in parallel publishing videos of its air defense groups hitting Hornets.

BTR-60 as a kamikaze ground drone — the Third Corps used it to break through defenses in Nove

The Ukrainian side turned a decommissioned Soviet armored personnel carrier into a single-use UGV (unmanned ground vehicle) with explosives. According to the Third Corps, such vehicles were used to blow up Russian fortifications source. "Rybar" assesses the episode as dating from the summer. It considers the very fact that a slow BTR-60 reached the outskirts of Nove an indicator of problems in the Russian defense source.

Technically, the conversion is simple. The BTR-60 has no control electronics, so linear actuators are fitted to the pedals, gear lever and steering wheel, and relays close the starters. If the link is lost, the actuator controller cuts the throttle and shuts down the engines source. In the same operation, the NC13 unit performed at least four UGV missions with Bullspike grenade launchers: after firing, the robots drove into shelters and detonated source.

update MAUL — a medical battalion disclosed statistics: 51.9% successful evacuations and 1.92 wounded per vehicle

The first public figures on an evacuation UGV show the real value of a robot in medical evacuation. The Ukrainian Maul, based on a quad bike with an armored capsule, an ICE and EW (electronic warfare) equipment, has carried out hundreds of missions. Of these, 51.9% ended with the wounded soldier handed over to the next stage source.

Over its service life, one vehicle evacuates an average of 1.92 soldiers. The spread is large: one is lost after 20 minutes, another survives 12 runs. The maximum mission distance is 110 km at a speed of 30–40 km/h. The outcome is most influenced by route preparation and coordination with neighboring units; time of day has almost no effect. Ukraine's Armolab has meanwhile refined the Robonoshi UGV — mechanized stretchers for the same task source.

Ukraine: reconnaissance drones

Vyriy Slavic — a Ukrainian Mavic replacement with GNSS-free navigation and a 30 km range

Vyriy Industries has released a reconnaissance copter that moves the crew back from the front line. Crews of commercial drones are a priority target, and 30 km of tactical range versus the few kilometers typical for a Mavic allows them to work from depth. The drone has passed combat trials in seven units source.

[TECH] Specifications according to Russia's PayloadUAV source:

• 6S1P solid-state battery, 40 000 mAh — up to 1.5 h of flight;

• range — 30 km tactical, 60 km maximum;

• navigation without GNSS (global navigation satellite systems) thanks to optical positioning;

• 2K camera on a three-axis gimbal, 10× optical and 30× hybrid zoom;

• the controller works with DELTA and Kropyva and streams video to VEZHA.

A kit costs 200 thousand UAH source. The controls replicate DJI logic so that operators do not need retraining. Russian channels are already spotting this aircraft at the front.

Besomar 1100 — a Ukrainian fixed-wing reconnaissance UAV for 4 hours and 100 km

Besomar 1100 fills the niche of long-duration surveillance at operational depth. Operating radius — up to 100 km, cruising speed — 90–100 km/h, altitude — up to 5500 m source.

Ukraine: long-range weapons

Fire Point disclosed the specifications of six products, including the FP-7.x Freyja anti-ballistic interceptor

Fire Point has compiled its lineup in a single table. The most important item in it is the anti-ballistic missile. [TECH] Parameters based on Fire Point materials source:

• FP-1 — drone, up to 3400 km, payload up to 60 kg, up to 12 h of flight;

• FP-2 — strike drone, up to 700 km, payload up to 200 kg, at least three versions, including autonomous and FPV;

• FP-5 Flamingo — cruise missile, up to 3000 km, 1200 kg, 950 km/h;

• FP-7 — ballistic, 250 km, 200 kg, claimed accuracy 14 m;

• FP-9 — ballistic, 850 km, 800 kg, claimed accuracy 20 m;

• FP-7.x Freyja — interceptor, 1500–2000 m/s, length 7.25 m, fragmentation warhead, combined infrared and radar seeker.

Previously, only a European-supplied infrared seeker was mentioned for the FP-7.x. The first deliveries of the interceptor are promised by the end of the year source. For scale: according to Ukraine's MoD, Fire Point received 107.4 billion UAH over two years for drones alone source.

update FP-2 — Russian sappers took apart the 105 kg warhead

[TECH] The Russian channel "Voenny Inzhener" published measurements of the warhead of the Ukrainian FP-2, designated SBB-105-FP in the documentation source. The mass is 105 kg, yet there is only about 33 kg of explosive. The rest is the cast casing with 15 mm walls, and 25–75 mm in the nose section. This is a penetrating high-explosive fragmentation warhead.

The zone of complete destruction of personnel is 15 m. The explosive varies: from TGA-18 to ersatz compositions. Initiation is by ED-8-Zh electric detonators or an ESKP-M fuze; timer-based self-destruction is possible.

update Ruta Block 1 — debris near the Azov Optical-Mechanical Plant and a satellite count of hits

Russian channels showed debris of the Destinus Ruta Block 1 cruise missile-drone after the strike on AOMZ. It includes a radio modem, elements of the navigation loop and a T150 turbojet engine source. "Voenny Osvedomitel" calls Destinus a Dutch company source.

Satellite images show hits on six buildings of the plant, five of which are production shops. The foundry shop suffered the most, with its roof collapsed source. InformNapalm analyzes why an enterprise of the missile defense industry, sanctioned since 2022, was hit only in the fifth year of the war source.

Russia: strike and interception assets

update Varvar — a handheld reusable launcher and a bill on transfer to private security companies

The Russian kinetic interceptor Varvar has entered service with the Center group of forces. It is also planned to be handed over to the civilian sector. Key parameters: weight about 3 kg versus 1.3 kg for the Yolka, speed up to 250 km/h, automatic target lock from 250 m, use at ranges up to 2 km, up to 5 minutes of flight source. Launch is from a handheld reusable launcher with an assault-rifle-type mechanism. After launch, AI guides the vehicle into a ramming strike on its own.

The first civilians to receive Varvar are to be private security companies — a corresponding bill is under consideration in the State Duma. In parallel, the company ZOV Ptitsy reported that its product on DMZ-3115 motors accelerated to over 500 km/h source. The purpose of the product has not been disclosed.

The Iva MANPADS in the Russian 51st Air Defense Division outwardly copies the Chinese QW-18

The Iva MANPADS (man-portable air defense system) has been spotted with mobile fire groups in Rostov Oblast. It is indistinguishable from the Iranian Misagh-2 and its Chinese prototype QW-18 source. Ukraine's Militarnyi draws the same conclusion about the QW-18/19 source.

Based on QW-18 parameters, it is a 71 mm missile with a dual-band IR seeker. Range — 0.5–6 km, 2–3 km against low-observable UAVs, speed — 600 m/s source. If the identification is correct, Russia is closing its MANPADS shortage for hunting Ukrainian Liutyis and FP-1s with imports.

update APKWS — Russia has an intact unexploded missile

An undamaged American APKWS guided missile has fallen into the hands of the Russian military source. Ukraine uses it against Gerans. An intact specimen of the laser seeker facilitates the development of countermeasures.

update Dan-T — according to Ukrainian monitoring, the first launch at the deep rear, Odesa

According to Ukrainian monitoring channels, the Russian air-launched missile-drone Dan-T was used against Odesa for the first time. Before that, according to Russian channels themselves, it operated in the frontline zone source. Mass — 270 kg, range — 450 km, low-altitude terrain-following flight is possible. Carriers are the Yak-130, Mi-28 and Mi-8; production is simpler than that of the Kh-101. A strike on Zaporizhzhia was filmed with a smoke trail: the missile was probably damaged by Ukrainian air defense source.

update Geran-4 "Seeker" — remotely piloted strikes on dry cargo ships and crossings

The Russian side continues strikes with optically guided Gerans on vessels in the Black Sea and the port of Chornomorsk source. Strikes on the bridge near Mayaky additionally create truck jams ahead of the next attack run source. "Rybar" claims that cargo handling in Greater Odesa has fallen more than 15-fold since July 22 source. The same source acknowledges that the port infrastructure itself is mostly operational.

Europe and NATO

Nyan from Callen-Lenz — the British Army takes into its establishment a jet-powered one-way drone proven by Ukraine

The UK is for the first time transferring Ukrainian combat experience in long-range strikes into its own organizational structure. The jet-powered one-way Nyan from Callen-Lenz (a BAE Systems division) has been shown together with the M270A2 MLRS and is being introduced into the 26th Regiment Royal Artillery source. Ukraine has been using it against the Russian rear for more than a year.

[TECH] Wingspan — 2.9 m, takeoff weight — more than 75 kg, payload — up to 20 kg. Engine — micro turbojet, cruising speed — 220 km/h, range — over 250 km. Launch from a Threod CATA B mobile pneumatic catapult.

BAE Systems ALMA — a Swedish drone found, selected and attacked a target on its own in 320 seconds

For the first time in European trials, a human only launched the vehicle, while the choice of the specific target was made by the machine. The ALMA drone with onboard AI from the startup Scaleout Systems detected several objects, ranked them and attacked an armored engineering vehicle source. About 200 of the 320 seconds of the cycle went to search and identification.

All computations are performed on board, without a satellite link or external server. Therefore, jamming the radio link during the attack phase becomes pointless. The Hornet, for comparison, remains semi-autonomous: target confirmation there is up to the operator source.

Wingcopter 262 — the first military drone from the German logistics UAV maker, with Ukrainian partner TAF Industries

Germany's Wingcopter opened a Security & Defence division and on September 14 showed the Wingcopter 262 tactical reconnaissance UAV source. It is an electric tiltrotor, i.e. a vehicle with tilting rotors: it takes off vertically and flies like an airplane. Takeoff weight — 10 kg, range — 150 km, endurance — up to 6 hours. On board are EO/IR (electro-optical and infrared) cameras with AI; navigation is claimed to be resistant to GNSS jamming.

The main thing here is the industrial tie-up. Since February there has been a memorandum on a joint venture with TAF Industries, which produces up to 80 000 FPVs per month. Delivery volumes and timelines have not been disclosed.

Skyranger will get an automatic reloading vehicle

Rheinmetall, together with Austria, is developing the Reloader vehicle. Its manipulator arm replaces a 400 kg magazine of 250 rounds in a few minutes source. For an anti-aircraft artillery system during a massive raid, ammunition is the bottleneck, and manual reloading of a heavy magazine under fire becomes unacceptable. The first variant will be the Skyranger 30, then the Skyranger 35.

RBS 70 and Bolide 2 — the Swedish laser-guided MANPADS is being reworked for small drones

The Russian KTsPN translated a Ukrainian analysis of the RBS 70 system. The attached document describes a new missile optimized against UAVs source. The RBS 70 is guided by a laser beam using the SACLOS scheme (semi-automatic command to line of sight). Therefore flares do not affect it, and a drone's small IR signature is not a hindrance.

[TECH] The PDF contains full specifications and a description of the Bolide 2. Saab presented the missile in May 2026; deliveries will begin in 2027. Compared with the Bolide:

• 50% more explosive;

• 40% denser fragmentation effect;

• aluminum casing instead of steel;

• more laser sensors in the proximity fuze;

• carbon-fiber canister (transport and launch container).

In July 2026, the Akvila regiment of the AFU 3rd Army Corps received the systems. Paired with the Giraffe 75 radar, the reaction time after target designation is 4–5 seconds. Export demand is growing: Finland ordered systems worth more than €100 million, Lithuania ordered missiles worth ~€320 million with deliveries in 2028–2032.

USA, Middle East, Asia and other areas

Falcon Peak 26.2 — the Pentagon has created permanent C-UAS ranges

From August 31 to September 25, experimental C-UAS (Counter-Unmanned Aircraft Systems) exercises took place at the Yuma range source. Three areas were practiced: interceptors, shotgun-based kinetic systems and detection. Northern Command and an interagency counter-narcotics group took part. The outcome is permanent test sites for the military and industry.

Strait of Hormuz — lasers against Iranian drones; an Iranian missile wounded eight Marines

Russia's RussianArms writes about the US military using combat lasers against Iranian UAVs and cruise missiles. Some of the systems, according to the channel, are aimed with Xbox-type joysticks. Attributing them to the 30 kW ODIN is the channel's own assumption source. At the same time, an Iranian cruise missile hit a non-military vessel, and eight US Marines were injured source.

Taiwan is building an industrial park in Chiayi for 100 companies to produce drones without Chinese components

The project's goal is the non-red supply chain concept, i.e. a supply chain without the PRC, with a full cycle from airframe to testing source. Next to it, a campus of NCSIST — the state institute that develops most Taiwanese missiles and drones — has opened.

Azerbaijan showed the SALVO and KAYRA naval drones

SALVO is a 15-meter armed patrol boat, KAYRA is a kamikaze boat. Against this backdrop, Azerbaijani analyst Fuad Shahbazov, in an article for the American CEPA, proposes that Baku become the military hub of the Caspian with the participation of Turkey and Ukraine's experience source. The summary is given by a Russian channel with a hostile assessment.

🔴 Other areas. The Israeli Hermes-450, according to available data, has been operating at the western approaches to Damascus from 10:00 to 15:00 for the fifth day in a row. There has been no such intensity there since 2025 source. [upd] CH-95 — the Sudanese army announced the fourth Chinese strike drone of the Rapid Support Forces shot down, supplied via the UAE source.

Priority 2. Military innovation

The EU approved five defense projects of common interest — four with Ukraine, with up to an estimated €5 billion of investment in drones and C-UAS

The EU Council launched the first EDPCI (European Defence Projects of Common Interest) source. The estimated investment in the DECODER program for unmanned and counter-drone assets is €3.5–5 billion through 2033. The largest areas are Eastern Flank Watch (€60–100 billion by 2036) and EU-FIAMD for air and missile defense (€55–80 billion by 2040). The combined ambition is about €190 billion.

The defense ministers did not agree on transferring Patriot to Ukraine from their own stocks. However, the European Peace Facility has been unblocked: €4.7 billion to compensate for transferred weapons, €900 million for aid to Ukraine and €1 billion for joint projects source.

The Russian regulator makes ERA-GLONASS mandatory for drone flights with 1027 connected users

From October 1, UAV flight plans without a personal account in ERA-GLONASS will be rejected source. More than 167 thousand aircraft are registered, and 1027 users are connected — less than 1%. The requirement to fit cryptographic information protection tools (CIPT) has been in force since March 1. However, according to the same specialist channel, there are still no working solutions source. Signal: the civilian drone sector in Russia is shrinking under controls aimed at law-abiding users.

update Yak-130M — first export contracts, series production from 2028

The Irkutsk Aviation Plant announced export contracts concluded after a showing in Egypt source. Series production will begin in 2028; three prototypes have been assembled. The theme of "trainer-combat aircraft as a drone interceptor" is developing in mirror fashion in NATO: a RUSI author proposes a multinational squadron of armed jet trainers against Russian UAVs source.

Ukraine's defense tech sector

DoD Solution raised $2.1 million in a pre-seed round for the AURA AI autonomy platform source. INFOZAHYST opened an R&D office in Denmark source. BlueBird Tech has begun renting out Hrets EW systems to private individuals and volunteers, which lowers the entry threshold for protection against drones source.

🟠 Asia. [upd] Type 25 — the Japanese coastal system with a range of up to 1000 km will take part in the US-Japanese Keen Sword exercise in October for the first time. There will be no live launches; the full targeting cycle will be practiced source. From 2027 Japan is building 65 standard ammunition depots and will add 130 by 2032. In 2022, stocks of PAC-3 MSE and SM-3 were estimated at about 60% of the norm source.

🟠 Cyber. Hegseth tasked US Cyber Command with countering election interference using more advanced AI than in 2024 source. France is allocating €1.6 million to train more than 200 offensive cybersecurity specialists source. The theft of $387.5 million from Bitget is attributed to North Korean hackers — the largest crypto theft of 2026 source.

🟠 Other. Researchers at IIT Hyderabad landed a child drone on a flying carrier with centimeter accuracy: RTK-GNSS on approach, a reinforcement-learning neural network in the final phase. This is a prototype for "aerial motherships" source. Rostec announced the start of assembly of the Su-75 flight prototype source.

Priority 3. The conflict around Ukraine: trends and signals

• Lyman direction. Third phase of "Vivaldi": Nove, Ridkodub, Katerynivka liberated, control restored near Karpivka and Novomykhailivka. DeepState gives +40.9 km² source, the corps — 51 km² and more than 250 prisoners. Russia's "Voenny Osvedomitel" visually counted more than 70 prisoners in the photos. "Rybar" acknowledges a real deterioration for the 20th and 25th armies.

• Front balance. According to the weekly summary by "Oko Gora", Ukraine lost 23 km² over September 21–27 source. Russian sources claim a breakthrough toward Vilniansk and an envelopment of Orikhiv source. Clément Molin counted a gap of more than 5000 km² between the maps of Russian channels and geolocated reality source.

• Ukrainian strikes on the rear. In Bryansk Oblast, a railway bridge on the Dyatkovo — Lyudinovo section was brought down source.

• Precursors. A NOTAM (notice to airmen) closes the airspace over Kapustin Yar from September 28 to October 3 daily from 9 to 19 source. This may be related to exercises or ballistic missile launches; there is no official information. Zelensky stated that North Korea is preparing another 10 thousand troops in addition to the 8 thousand already fighting source.

• De-escalation signal. Trump stated that Zelensky agreed to reduce the intensity of strikes on Russian refineries source.

• Air defense resources. WSJ: the US used up 50% of its Tomahawk stock and 66% of its Patriot missiles in the war with Iran source.

• Weather. The temperature crossing zero threatens drone icing and, according to Trehubov, may partially ease the situation of Russian troops source.

• By Putin's decree, the authorized strength of the Russian Armed Forces has been set at 2 441 630 people, of whom 1 550 500 are military personnel source.

What to watch

1. Digital infrastructure has become a full-fledged category of targets. Strikes on data centers have for the first time halted government services — passport issuance and Diia. Kyiv's reaction through an emergency war cabinet shows that this is perceived more acutely than strikes on energy.
2. Jet drones versus jet interceptors. The Geran-4 reaches 8 km and works via cellular networks, while Ukraine has gained four jet and high-speed interceptors in 10 days. The decisive factor will be not speed but detonation accuracy.
3. Starlink is becoming the standard for short-range strike aviation. The Hornet is losing its relay, and a "mothership" aircraft hunting Russian MFGs has appeared. The satellite link turns drones into a networked system with self-defense.
4. Recycling old equipment for robotization. The kamikaze BTR-60 and the MAUL statistics (51.9% successful missions) show that UGVs are already evaluated by the economics of losses, not by demonstrations.
5. Autonomous target selection has left the laboratories. The Swedish ALMA ranked and attacked a target on its own without communications. Britain is simultaneously taking Nyan into its establishment — European armies are transferring Ukrainian practice into their structures.

What's new in UAVs and counter-UAV

• Starlink-equipped "mothership" aircraft (Ukraine) — escorts strike drones, drops FPVs on MFGs that have revealed themselves.

• Prytula Foundation jet interceptor (Ukraine) — Geran-5 hit at 425 km/h and an altitude of over 3 km.

• Kamikaze BTR-60 (Ukraine) — remotely controlled demolition of fortifications.

• Vyriy Slavic (Ukraine) — reconnaissance copter, 30 km, 1.5 h, GNSS-free navigation, 200 thousand UAH.

• Besomar 1100 (Ukraine) — fixed-wing reconnaissance UAV, 4 h, 100 km radius.

• Nyan (UK) — jet-powered one-way drone, 250+ km, being taken into the British Army's establishment.

• ALMA (Sweden, BAE Systems / Scaleout Systems) — autonomous target selection and attack in 320 seconds.

• Wingcopter 262 (Germany) — electric tiltrotor, 150 km, 6 h, JV with TAF Industries.

• Reloader for Skyranger (Germany and Austria) — replacement of a 400 kg magazine by a manipulator arm.

• RBS 70 with Bolide 2 (Sweden) — laser-guided MANPADS with a missile for small drones, deliveries from 2027.

• Iva (Russia) — MANPADS outwardly identical to the Chinese QW-18.

• [upd] Varvar (Russia) — handheld reusable launcher, plans for transfer to private security companies.

• [upd] Geran-4 (Russia) — 8 km ceiling, MESH and SIM cards.

• [upd] Geran-5 K5 (Russia) — strike near the Polish border; DSMAC in Geran-5 debris.

Military space and space-based data

Constellations and launches. Starship reached low Earth orbit for the first time and deployed 26 Starlink V3 satellites source. This matters for the front: Starlink already serves as the control link for Hornets and fixed-wing "motherships". Japan's Synspective will launch two StriX SAR satellites (with synthetic aperture radar imaging at night and through clouds) on the domestic H3 instead of Electron in 2027. By the end of the decade, the company plans a constellation of ~30 satellites source.

Orbital operations. According to Interesting Engineering, back in February 2025 China transferred fuel from a tanker satellite to a BeiDou navigation satellite in high orbit source. Proven rendezvous and docking with another spacecraft are the basis of anti-satellite scenarios.

Reconnaissance from space. Chinese satellites record that the US Typhon system remains at Kanoya air base. Ongoing construction work is visible nearby source. In images of the Russian Dyagilevo air base, tents have been added to the tires and painted silhouettes, but mostly over decommissioned Il-78s and Tu-95MSs source. The satellite count of six hit AOMZ buildings became the basis for assessing the strike on the plant.

Navigation without GNSS. Several independent examples appeared in a single day. The Russian Geran-5 uses correlation-based DSMAC, the Ukrainian Slavic uses optical positioning, and the German Wingcopter 262 is claimed to be resistant to GNSS jamming. An unnamed manufacturer advertises a trio of solutions source:

• VN300 visual navigation;

• a 5-element CRPA antenna (Controlled Reception Pattern Antenna — an adaptive antenna array that suppresses jamming) with claimed resistance of up to 110 dB;

• a communication link with more than 1000 frequency hops per second.
These are vendor figures without independent verification.

Changes in data access. A Russian strike destroyed the Opendatabot office in Dnipro. The service aggregates Ukrainian state registers of companies, court decisions and real estate and provides them via API source. Whether the API is currently working has not been reported. For OSINT on Ukrainian legal entities this is a notable risk.

Under the radar

• The technical scheme of robotizing the BTR-60: the vehicle has no control electronics, so linear actuators on the pedals and steering wheel and relays on the starters are enough. The threshold for replication is low for both sides source.

• Measurements of the FP-2 warhead: 105 kg of metal and only 33 kg of explosive. This is a penetrating high-explosive fragmentation warhead source.

• Nyan is moving from Ukrainian practice into the British artillery structure together with the M270A2. A rare example of combat experience being transferred back into a NATO army source.

• Statistics on restrictions at Russian airports. Over the week, 65 restrictions were imposed at 21 airports; since the beginning of the year, a 3.3-fold increase over 2025, with only 11 days out of 270 passing without restrictions. At Berlin Brandenburg airport, 28 drones were recorded in the first half of the year versus 8 for all of 2025 source.

• The "war against sensors" concept from "Russky Inzhener". The positional deadlock is explained by the "sensor field plus strike drone" combination, and knocking out a single command post of "Mavic operators" reduces the number of FPV strikes many times over. The author interprets a Russian observation drone over Kyiv as the result of suppressing Ukrainian radars source.

• ERA-GLONASS and CIPT for civilian drones in Russia: the requirements are in force, yet less than 1% of aircraft are connected source.

And what about our Chinese comrades?

• Beijing has banned drone ownership. From November 15, it is prohibited in the capital not only to fly but also to store drones and key components. The state pays an extra 30% of the price on sale, up to 3000 yuan. Prices on the secondary market fell by about 40%. Against this backdrop, 3.3 million civilian drones are registered in the country source.

• Kangshuo Electric Group showed a concept of a mobile C-UAS on 70 mm rockets. 6×6 chassis, up to 30 rockets on the launcher, a detection radar for 40 km, engagement up to 6 km in range and 4.5 km in altitude. Two types of rockets — laser-guided and with a programmable fuze; the warhead carries 1920 fragments source.

• The PLA Southern Theater held exercises near Huangyan Island. Reconnaissance, early warning and rapid maneuver were practiced source.

• Mock-ups of Japanese E-767 AEW (airborne early warning), F-35 and F-2 aircraft have appeared at a desert test range. There are also replicas of shelters at the Misawa and Kadena bases. According to "Rybar", the targets serve, among other things, to train AI in target recognition source.

• Beijing has expanded travel restrictions for key AI specialists. In some cases, party permission is also required for family members. Previously this applied to Alibaba and DeepSeek employees source.

External analysis

• Avengers Labs: how Ukraine shares data. Defender Media clarifies what is missing from the Russian-language retellings. Up to 12 British companies, selected through the UK MoD's RAID group, will get access to 5 million labeled frames from DELTA without the right to download. The priority is AI for swarms without communications and GPS. Ukraine sells computational access, not the data itself, and partially answers the question of combat data sovereignty source.

• The US Navy used naval drones in combat for the first time. According to Defense Tech & Acquisition, the strike on Bandar Abbas was carried out by three Corsairs. More than 100 thousand service members use the Maven Smart System. This shows that the role of USVs (unmanned surface vessels) has gone beyond the Ukrainian-Black Sea theater source.

• The lesson of Spitfire versus Lightning. Defence-UA recalls British experiments of the 1960s: a fast interceptor attacks a slow low-altitude target poorly. This is an argument in favor of light slow aviation against Shaheds, rather than the jet trainer-combat aircraft promoted by Russian channels and RUSI source.

• The US and China agreed on a memorandum on crisis military communications. A separate channel is being created for incidents in the AI domain. The mechanisms have not yet been disclosed. Against the backdrop of the Geneva story with the removal of the requirement for human verification of AI targets, this is the only bilateral safeguard source.

• Drones in humanitarian logistics. According to the Kyiv Independent, the Ukrainian military delivered about 4 t of food by drones to occupied Oleshky despite Russian countermeasures source. The scale shows that heavy supply drones have become a regular means of transport.

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