Daily digest, 27 October 2026

Interception of jet-powered drones and cruise missiles

Helsing CONTRA: German AI-enabled air defense system with two interceptors costing under €100,000

German company Helsing has proposed an answer to the threat against which Ukraine is now asking Europe for help. The goal is a mass-produced interceptor against jet-powered UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicles) and cruise missiles. Such an interceptor is meant to fill the niche between expensive SAMs (surface-to-air guided missiles) and FPV interceptors, which lack speed and altitude.

The system comprises two vehicles:

• AD-1 Inferno: turbojet-powered; speed over 700 km/h, range over 20 km, intercept altitude up to 9 km. It can loiter over a designated area, operate in a swarm and re-attack a target (source).

• AD-2 Ambush: solid-fuel; speed up to Mach 2.5 (about 3000 km/h), same range and altitude. Designed for rapid interception of high-speed targets (source).

In the midcourse phase both vehicles are guided by commands from ground-based radars. In the terminal phase they are guided by their own radar seeker. According to Helsing, this seeker is ten times cheaper than comparable ones and is built without exclusive components. The system's AI (artificial intelligence) fuses data from radars and from electro-optical, infrared and acoustic sensors from any manufacturer through an open architecture (source).

A transport-launch canister holds 20 AD-1 or 40 AD-2 and is mounted on a vehicle or a railway flatcar. Both vehicles are currently in testing; development is planned to be completed in the second half of 2027. After that, if orders are placed, output could reach several thousand units per month. On the same day, Ukrainian Defense Minister Yevhen Khmara named SAM systems against jet-powered drones as one of three priorities in an appeal to the E5 format: Germany, the United Kingdom, France, Poland and Italy (source).

[TECH] in the post: seeker parameters, canister capacity, production at Helsing Resilience Factories (source).

update Starlink/Starshield: ISW says interception rate of jet-powered Gerans fell from 77% to 74% during the restrictions

The first quantitative assessment has appeared of how restrictions on satellite communications affected Ukrainian air defense. The drop is small, but the explanation matters. According to an assessment by ISW (the US Institute for the Study of War), high-speed interceptor drones need stable satellite communications, and these were restricted on October 14–24 (source).

The figures show the scale of the technical problem. According to Reuters, at speeds of 110–120 km/h the link dropped out for 10–20 seconds. Zelensky's adviser Serhiy Beskrestnov stated that commercial Starlink in Ukraine has long been limited to vehicle speeds of 70–90 km/h and blocked on Russian territory. According to him, it is therefore unsuitable for long-range strikes, while Starshield is used for other tasks (source). Musk insists otherwise but has presented no public evidence for his version.

The discussion shows how deeply the system is embedded in Ukrainian defense. Air Force spokesman Yuriy Ihnat said that Starlink is used by tactical aviation and by helicopters intercepting UAVs: through it, crews stay in contact with combat control officers (source). Russian analyst Aleksey Ramm writes that five military Starshield satellites have been launched since August 16, the last on October 16, and that all of them are integrated into the common Starlink network. From this he concludes that the civilian and military components cannot be separated when selecting targets (source).

A Ukrainian technical analysis (as retold by a Russian channel) adds a caveat: compatible terminals, including Starlink Mini, can officially connect to Starshield. Therefore the appearance of a terminal on a drone does not by itself prove that commercial-plan restrictions are being circumvented (source).

Ban-One: Ukrainian interceptor with a peak speed of 370 km/h

Pershа Universalna Firma (PUF) has bet on speed. The Ban-One attacks at 190–345 km/h, with a peak speed of 370 km/h. The vehicle is designed against multicopters, fixed-wing UAVs and Shaheds, including at altitudes of several kilometers.

The speed controller is mounted externally for cooling during prolonged operation at maximum thrust. The airframe is modular: analog or digital video and a daytime or thermal camera can be selected, and the lower section can be replaced to accommodate a warhead weighing up to 400 g. The ground station works with analog, digital and fiber-optic drones. The product has received an NSN (NATO Stock Number).

[TECH] in the post: video frequencies (5.8 and 6.7 GHz) and control frequencies (500–1050 MHz, 1.9–2.6 GHz), 8S3P battery, camera configurations (source).

HV VTX Pro: Wild Hornets doubled video transmitter power; interceptor range expected to grow from 20 to 30 km

The Ukrainian company has passed state testing of a VTX (video transmitter) for the Hornet Vision digital system. Its power has more than doubled, to 4 W. The transmitter was tested on the Sting interceptor, the Queen of Hornets cargo platform and the 10-inch Wild Hornets Digital anti-aircraft drone. For drones with omnidirectional antennas, the operating radius is expected to grow from roughly 20 to 30 km, and effectiveness against low-flying targets by at least 20% (source).

The transmitter is already in serial production. According to the company, switching to in-house components has noticeably reduced the cost of the drones (source).

Kalitka-KA: Russian 7.62-mm turret with AI-assisted aiming for counter-drone defense

Russia is showcasing its own automated small-arms close-in defense. The semi-automatic turret, built around a PKT machine gun, is intended to protect command posts, artillery positions, assault group routes, logistics and critical infrastructure (source). Kalashnikov is named as the developer. Aiming is performed by AI, there is radar integration; combat footage was published earlier (source).

Ukrainian Shershen SAM system: R-287T and R-287R missiles based on the R-27 revealed, but there is no funding

The multi-caliber system is designed for Soviet and NATO missiles. The R-287T receives the GSN-203T infrared seeker from Radioniks. Lock-on range against a typical target is at least 30 km head-on and more than 100 km in a tail chase. The R-287R receives a Ukrainian active radar seeker. The project remains an unfunded development (source).

Directed energy and new interceptors

Russia announced serial production of laser counter-UAV systems

Russia announced a transition to serial production along two lines. Laser systems will go into serial production. Testing of electromagnetic systems that disable onboard electronics has been completed. Both will become part of the layered Antidrone Dome system, to be shown on October 28–29 at the Russia–Africa summit. Performance specifications and volumes have not been disclosed, and the export-oriented venue of the presentation points to an aim at foreign markets (source).

France tested the HELMA-P laser aboard the aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle

The counter-drone laser tests took place during the La Fayette 26 deployment (source).

L3Harris received up to $60 million for a long-range UAV interceptor for the US Army

The three-year contract was awarded under the XRC program. The company has moved to the second phase: flight testing of a fully integrated prototype. Specifications are not disclosed (source).

Boats and ground robots as carriers

DIU announced the SWAP-USV competition: an uncrewed UAV-carrier boat with an air defense function, funding up to $100 million

The first phase concerned a UAV carrier for strikes on surface targets. The second phase is devoted to air defense: a production-ready system comprising a boat, detection means, a launcher and weapons is required. Weapon options include Hellfire, APKWS, Stinger and lasers; weapon employment remains under operator control. The boat's minimum range is 370 km, cruising speed 18.5 km/h. Submissions are accepted until November 30; second-phase funding is up to $40 million (source).

update MV11: UFORCE heavy USV received a US phased-array radar and interceptor canisters for up to 7 days on station

A translation of material on NATO exercise REPMUS 2026 in Portugal shows that Ukrainian-British UFORCE is pushing port air defense out into the open sea. The 11-meter metal-hulled MV11, with a payload of up to 9 t, carries a US phased-array radar and launch canisters for interceptor drones. It receives targeting data from external sources. The logistics L11 carries a standard 20-foot container. At the exercise the company played both the "red" and "blue" sides simultaneously.

The MV7.2 has integrated AIM-9, AIM-9X and R-73 missiles, as well as a "magazine" container of FPV drones. FPV control runs over a radio link with a CRPA antenna (an adaptive antenna array that suppresses jamming) or over fiber optics. The MV7.3 launches SeaStrike bomber drones on the move, with a 10–12 kg payload and a 40–50 km radius. The entire package is connected to a C2 (command and control) system synchronized with Ukraine's Delta. There are no critical Chinese components in the export line.

[TECH] in the document: platform table, armament, machine vision for target classification, communications redundancy scheme (source).

UGVs in Ukrainian logistics have become a mass target for Russian drones

The number of ground robots hit in Russian videos is now measured in dozens per release. UGVs (unmanned ground vehicles) are taking the place of vehicles in supplying the front line. The Rubikon Center publishes compilations in which UGVs are the most frequent target along with the "Baba Yaga" (source). A Russian channel recounts an interview with the commander of "Sparta": Ukrainian "little cars" carry two anti-tank mines each, are delivered to the area by a "Baba Yaga" and require a relay. The author admits that no equivalent of such a combination is visible on the Russian side (source).

update StarGate — SkyFall heavy drone evacuated two severely wounded from the "gray zone" in a week

Evacuation by heavy drone is moving from isolated cases into an established structure. In a week, SkyFall's StarGate evacuated two severely wounded from the "gray zone". One sortie was almost 60 km there and back under active GPS jamming; navigation was provided by an AI-based system. The aircraft's payload is up to 150 kg (source). 30 minutes after takeoff, the wounded soldier was already being received by a ground team (source). A Russian channel notes that such sorties are covered by three battalions with bombers and reconnaissance drones. It calls this the first steps of small unmanned medical aviation and links it to the mass availability of heavy copters and Starlink (source).

Communications, GNSS-denied navigation, EW

"Kolibri 13" FR1 — Ukrainian carrier-relay has switched to a digital channel

TAF Industries has moved control of the carrier and its video into a single digital channel. The company explains that digital video cannot be intercepted to direction-find the crew. The relay for strike FPVs is supplied in several frequency configurations. The long leg operates in the 6000–7200 and 7000–8000 MHz bands; the link to the strike drone is still analog, and a fully digital version is in development. Video from the strike drone is received by a horn antenna in the nose that cuts out extraneous noise. The product is codified, and orders are booked two months ahead (source).

Lucky Strike-2.1 — PG Robotics has integrated Salamandra optical navigation

The updated Ukrainian strike-reconnaissance drone determines its position from the image of a downward-facing camera. It continues its route, holds position and returns to the launch point without GPS (source).

"Boryslav" and "STRYI" — Ukrainian pairing of a passive detector and an EW station against FPVs

InLab offers a pair for interception and suppression. The "Boryslav" detector emits nothing: it intercepts the enemy drone's analog video, displays the picture on a screen and determines the VTX frequency. The "STRYI" station jams the control and video channels. Both products are on Brave1 Market (source).

"Ushkuynik" — Russian system for voice control of a group of aerial and ground robots

At the All-Russian Drone Congress, an interface was shown in which a single operator needs only a voice or text command. The software checks the command, assesses the vehicles' capabilities and distributes the mission among them, and the operator confirms it before launch. The channel rightly notes: voice is only an interface; what matters is the resilience of coordination when communications are lost (source).

MeshTRX — voice communication over LoRa on Meshtastic boards

Open firmware turns Heltec V3/V4 boards with the SX1262 chip into an offline radio. LoRa (a long-range, low-data-rate communication protocol) was originally designed for infrequent sensor packets. Speech is compressed by the Codec2 vocoder to 3200 bit/s and encrypted with AES-256. The Quadro Code channel comments that the MELP vocoder at 2400 bit/s and below is more robust, and that LoRa here operates at the limit of channel load (source).

update "Spektr" — wideband receiver with a horn antenna on a 12-meter mast demonstrated a 25+ km flight

The manufacturer showed frontline video: the "Spektr" receiver as part of a ground station and a 4.8–6.1 GHz horn with 21 dBi gain. The picture near the ground is stable and recovers after dropouts (source).

Component base

Avega 6X — Russian flight controller with triple redundancy enters series production ahead of Chinese export controls

This is a direct indicator of dependence on China. From 18 November 2026, the PRC is tightening export rules for autopilots and UAV components. OOO "Chistoye Nebo" (CSKY) is launching series production of a controller with three independent inertial modules and two barometers: if a sensor fails, it switches to the backup. The controller is built on the STM32H753 (480 MHz), is compatible with ArduPilot and is suitable for fixed-wing and multirotor UAVs (source). In parallel, the Ulyanovsk SKB released "Piranya" FPV configurations. The "Piranya-13" model lifts up to 10 kg, flies up to 50 km and withstands up to 300 sorties (source).

Protection of facilities in the Russian rear

Yandex has relocated three supercomputers, and the EW association "Chistoye Nebo" is taking on data center protection

Strikes on data centers have already changed company behavior. According to Kommersant, UAVs affected five data centers of Yandex, Sber and VK (source). Yandex stated that the supercomputers "Lyapunov", "Galushkin" and "Chervonenkis" were not damaged: they were moved and hidden at new sites (source).

The association of EW (electronic warfare) manufacturers "Chistoye Nebo" and "Sinergiya Integrator" have agreed to build three-tier protection: detection, jamming and mechanical protection with nets and armor plates. A separate engineering problem is that the facility's own EW affects equipment inside the data center (source). Among new details of the Ministry of Digital Development's recommendations: for category K1 facilities, underground, rock or bunker siting is preferred. The cost increase per facility is estimated at 5–10%, and the market expects tariffs to rise by about 10% (source). The Ukrainian side speaks of mass strikes on data centers in the occupied south (source).

Bryansk Oblast is beginning to install anti-drone nets over inter-municipal roads (source). The FSB reported the detention of two people who were supposed to launch FPV drones from the Moscow region at an element of Moscow's missile defense and an energy facility. According to the plan, control was to be taken over by operators on Ukrainian territory (source).

Cyber and intelligence

SVR document leak: InformNapalm has begun a series of publications on Russian foreign intelligence

The first publication links Russian foreign intelligence officers to the organization of a rally in Budapest in support of the Paks-2 nuclear power plant; a series of materials has been announced (source). Separately, Android trojans disguised as a "UAV radar" and a "state VPN" with access to SMS and banking apps have been detected in Russia (source).

Middle East, Africa and other zones

update LUCAS — wreckage of a US strike UAV found in Iran

The find came over the weekend, against the backdrop of CNN reports on the departure of US diplomats and some military personnel from Middle Eastern countries (source). A Russian channel attributes a Starlink terminal and computer vision in the guidance phase to the aircraft, but provides no confirmation (source).

Houthis claimed strikes on Riyadh and Jeddah

Jeddah airport was hit (source). The Houthis also claimed strikes on Riyadh airport and a pumping station of the East–West pipeline (source). Hezbollah, according to Reuters, is focused on procuring explosives and producing drones (source).

update "Lancet" — use against boats carrying militants on a river in Mali

A "double kill" has been published (source). An Africa Corps "Tigr-M" with an "Arbalet-DM" module and an EW system was also spotted there (source).

Priority 2. Military innovation

update "Bars" — the Bundeswehr will test the Ukrainian missile-drone in early 2027 and may order hundreds

According to the FT, a small batch will be contracted in the coming weeks. If the tests are successful, Germany will order several hundred units. The "Bars" has a range of up to 1000 km and a payload of up to 105 kg. A joint venture in Germany already shipped Ukraine the first batch in October, manufactured and paid for by the German side (source).

Freyja — Ukraine has completed its part of the European anti-ballistic system; the delay is on the partners' side

Zelensky stated that work by the ten participating countries is ongoing and needs to be accelerated (source). The system is based on the Ukrainian FP-7.X interceptor (source). A Russian channel lays out the roles as follows: Fire Point makes the airframe and the mobile launcher. Germany will supply the seeker; French, Italian, Swedish and Danish radars are being considered. The command post will be Norwegian, and the engine and fuel will be produced at a plant in Denmark (source).

Russia is building the 29B6 Konteyner over-the-horizon radar in Kaliningrad Oblast with a range of up to 3000 km

According to The Times, the station has three antenna sections more than 500 m long. It will extend Russia's radar surveillance of Europe (source).

Uvision and Wayland Autonomy have integrated the IRIS reconnaissance payload into the CORTEX architecture

The combination shortens the detection-to-engagement cycle through onboard target geolocation. IRIS uses AI and GNSS-independent (global navigation satellite systems) positioning. It images more than 200 km² per hour at a resolution of 2–7 cm (source).

update Ghost Shark — Anduril has shown the underwater vehicle's payload bays for the first time

The demonstration coincided with the Australian government's October 19 announcement on developing weapons and sensors for Ghost Shark, Speartooth and BlueBottle (source).

Industry and procurement — in brief

• Safran (France) — output of AASM Hammer aerial bombs in 2026 is about 1400 versus 200 in 2022; the target for 2027 is 2000. The production cycle has been cut in half (source).

• [upd] JSM — Denmark has selected the missile for the F-35A and become the seventh customer (source).

• Germany has ordered 12 British 30-mm DS30M mounts for F128 frigates — including for use against UAVs (source).

• In a report to Congress, the US Air Force allows for arming bombers for air-to-air combat amid a shortage of fighters. 1509 aircraft are needed by 2035; 1288 are in service (source).

• The Pentagon's FORTRESS program — 90-day self-sufficiency of bases on US territory and readiness of civilian plants to switch to military production (source).

• The US Treasury proposes a near-total ban on American investment in AI development in Russia and other listed countries. The ban covers AI agents and robotic platforms; technical compute thresholds cease to matter (source).

• The US Army has activated the 3rd Battalion, 43rd Air Defense Artillery Regiment on Guam against Chinese and North Korean missiles (source). Japan has for the first time deployed Type-25 anti-ship missiles outside their home station — in less than two minutes (source).

• The "prototype to series production" barrier: according to Aleksey Chadayev, about 95% of developments die at it. Unit cost initially rises during the transition to batch production because of logistics, the quality system, technical support, "white" (legitimate) supplies and training (source).

Priority 3. Conflict around Ukraine: trends and signals

• Front. The Russian advance continues, but slowly: about 1.3–1.5 km² per day in October versus 8.6 km² in October 2025 (source). Ukrainian counterattacks are under way on the Lyman axis and along Mokri Yaly toward Velyka Novosilka. Russia has moved the 50th Unmanned Systems Brigade "Varyag" to the Lyman area (source). By the count of "Oko Gora", based on General Staff data, Ukrainian attacks have outnumbered Russian ones since September, now for the ninth consecutive week (source).

• Aviation. The Russian Aerospace Forces have shifted bombing on the Zaporizhzhia axis 10–15 km deeper, toward the second line of defense. OSINT analyst Clément Molin sees this as an intent to bypass Orikhiv (source).

• Ukrainian long-range strikes. Storm Shadow missiles hit the Energiya plant in Yelets, which produces chemical power sources for the Iskander, Kinzhal and Pantsir; at least seven hits were recorded (source). 113 UAVs were intercepted over Voronezh Oblast; the targets were production facilities, and according to preliminary data serious damage was avoided (source).

• Russian strikes. Kyiv was struck with ballistic missiles. A Russian channel notes that the light RM-48U have not proven more accurate than the 9M723 (source). The campaign against Dnipro river crossings continues.

• Black Sea shipping. Russia continues to hit vessels with remotely controlled Gerans — five more bulk carriers (source). According to Ambrey and the FT, about 387 vessels were damaged in the Black Sea in Q3 — five times more than in the previous quarter. Greater Odesa ports handled fewer than 10 vessels in September versus 400 in July (source).

• The cost of strikes for Russia. RNPK (Russian National Reinsurance Company) is preparing an "emergency brake": if losses exceed 200 billion rubles, the rate will rise from 1% to 50% and limits will be cut fivefold. The Central Bank has already recapitalized the company by 165 billion rubles (source).

• Ukrainian air defense. Ukraine is asking the E5 to transfer 10% of their interceptor stocks, in particular for Patriot and IRIS-T, against future deliveries, and says it can double drone output in 2027 (source).

• Preparing for a protracted war. The NSDC approved preparing cities for all-round defense (source); martial law has been extended until the end of January 2027. According to three sources of hromadske, the 59th Unmanned Systems Brigade is being returned to the Ground Forces (source).

• Negotiations and Europe. A meeting of Putin, Trump and Xi at APEC on November 18–19 is being prepared (source). France is discussing with ten countries the deployment of Rafales with nuclear-armed cruise missiles (source). NATO exercise Resolute Reforger is under way in Latvia with 3000 troops near the border with Russia.

What to watch

1. Europe is entering the market for mass-produced interceptors of jet-powered drones: Helsing is targeting €100k per unit and thousands of units per month. The timeline is the second half of 2027, so for the coming year Ukraine will fill this niche with its own interceptors and FPVs.
2. Dependence on Starlink now has a number: ISW estimates a 3 p.p. drop in the interception rate of jet-powered Gerans. In parallel, Ukraine is ramping up its own high-speed interceptors (Ban-One up to 370 km/h) and video link range (HV VTX Pro, up to 30 km).
3. Chinese export controls on autopilots from November 18 are pushing Russian manufacturers toward their own component base. Avega 6X is the first notable example.
4. The uncrewed boat is definitively becoming an air defense carrier: the US SWAP-USV competition and the Ukrainian-British MV11 with a phased array radar describe the same concept.
5. Russia has announced serial production of counter-UAV lasers, but the first showcase is for export, at the Russia–Africa summit. Actual specifications should be expected on October 28–29.

What's new in UAVs and counter-UAV

• Helsing CONTRA, AD-1 Inferno and AD-2 Ambush (Germany) — AI air defense; over 700 km/h and up to Mach 2.5; range over 20 km, altitude up to 9 km; under €100k.

• Ban-One (Ukraine, PUF) — interceptor; peak speed 370 km/h; warhead up to 400 g; NATO-codified.

• HV VTX Pro ("Dyki Shershni", Ukraine) — 4 W video transmitter; interceptor radius is expected to grow from roughly 20 to 30 km.

• Kolibri 13 FR1 (TAF Industries, Ukraine) — digital carrier-relay; long-range link 6–8 GHz.

• Lucky Strike-2.1 (PG Robotics, Ukraine) — Salamandra optical navigation without GPS.

• Boryslav and STRIY (InLab, Ukraine) — passive interception of analog FPV video plus jamming.

• Kalitka-KA (Russia) — 7.62 mm turret with AI and radar integration.

• R-287T and R-287R (Ukraine) — missiles based on the R-27 for the Shershen SAM system; not funded.

• Rosoboronexport lasers and electromagnetic systems (Russia) — transition to series production announced.

• HELMA-P (France) — laser tested on an aircraft carrier.

• L3Harris XRC (USA) — long-range interceptor; up to $60 million.

• SWAP-USV (DIU, USA) — boat carrying UAVs and air defense.

• [upd] MV11 (UFORCE) — phased array radar and interceptors; on station up to 7 days.

• Ushkuynik (Russia) — voice control of a group of robots.

• Avega 6X (Russia) — controller with triple-redundant IMU.

• RZ-100 Morok (Ukraine) — detailed Russian analysis, link in the "Under the radar" section.

Military space and space-based data

Bandwagon-5 expanded commercial space reconnaissance. 32 spacecraft reached orbit. Planet Pelican-12 images at up to 30 cm resolution and processes data on board on an NVIDIA Jetson platform. Four ICEYE SAR satellites (synthetic aperture radar satellites) are intended for Portugal's Atlantic Constellation. Acadia-11/12 provide resolution up to 50 cm; Umbra-13/14 were also launched. Three HawkEye 360 Hawk-15 spacecraft conduct ELINT (electronic intelligence) on radio emissions (source).

[upd] Starfall — cargo manifest of the first space delivery test disclosed. The capsule is designed for a payload of up to 1 t. On board were batteries, a satellite-linked tracker, a desalinator, medical kits, as well as a stowage test of a 20-person UNI-PAC III life raft. The goal of the Rocket Cargo program is urgent delivery of supplies to areas without roads or runways (source).

Space Force awarded the first "operational" CASR reserve contracts. This is an analogue of the Civil Reserve Air Fleet, but for space. Six space surveillance companies — EOS Space Systems, NorthStar, InTrack, Anduril (ExoAnalytic), Slingshot and LeoLabs — received a combined $1.37 million (source).

Starshield: according to a Russian analyst, five military satellites integrated into the Starlink network have been launched since August 16 (source).

Changes in data access:

• Russian vessels in the Black Sea are shifting from turning off AIS (Automatic Identification System) to spoofing the signal. Russian Forces Spotter has recorded at least 12 such vessels, which complicates maritime monitoring (source). Some bulk carriers are sailing with navigation switched off (source).

• Commercial imagery continues to reveal strike results. Hits are visible on workshops 24 and 25 of the 75th Arsenal in Serpukhov, where components of the S-300V, Buk and Tunguska are repaired (source). At Gvardeyskoye airfield in Crimea, construction of more than 20 revetted shelters and about 40 "garages" for Gerans is visible (source).

Under the radar

• RZ-100 "Morok": a breakdown of the Ukrainian strike drone. A Russian channel reconciles three conflicting sets of specifications and concludes that "Morok" is a family. The small version has a 1.5 m wingspan and a warhead of about 3 kg, while "800 km and 30 kg" applies only to the large one. It proposes shooting it down using acoustics and thermal signature, because radar detects the aircraft poorly (source).

• A 50 g Russian communications module. It transmits video at 25–70 kbit/s without Starlink or Iridium and with weak mobile coverage: it compresses the stream to fit the channel and processes part of the data on board (source).

• Claim of attacks on FPV drones at 10–15 km. A Russian team claims it demonstrated attacks on FPV firmware on the line of contact: anomalous drone behavior ended in hard landings. According to the team, its long-range suppression complex uses the "Tishina" ELINT system, and the ELINT software is distributed to the military free of charge. There is no independent confirmation (source).

• Circuit board of the upgraded Ukrainian "Nemezis" drone. According to Russian data, the stack is Baltic-British (source).

• Passive protection regulations in Russia. Code of practice SP 542.1325800.2024 on protective enclosing structures against UAVs, with Amendment No. 1 of 25.08.2026, and a decree of 24.08.2026 require the protection of critical infrastructure facilities. Failure to act may result in temporary administration (source).

• Russian training comic on AFU tactics. Rotations have stretched to 15–25 days with an 8–10 km approach on foot, and every company has a Starlink terminal. Up to 90% of communication trenches are covered by galleries of 200–300 m, and resupply is done by large drones and UGVs (source).

What about our Chinese comrades?

• A brigade of the PLA 81st Army, while practicing swarm employment of UAVs, experienced complete loss of control under wideband jamming. This prompted work on jamming resistance, 3D printing of spare parts, and simulator-based operator qualification (source).

• The China-Indonesia exercise "Lijian-2026" in Guangdong will practice manned-unmanned teaming (source).

• The PLA Navy has received another Type 903A replenishment ship, the "Dalinorhu", with a displacement of 23,000 t. A single such unit is enough to support a destroyer squadron for more than 20 days (source).

• The Eastern Theater Command practiced an airborne landing of the 72nd Army from Y-20 aircraft deep into the defenses of a notional Taiwan (source). A photo has emerged of the rollout of an Il-78MK-90A tanker bearing PLA Air Force markings (source).

• From 18 November, the PRC is tightening exports of autopilots and UAV components, and Russian manufacturers are already reacting (source).

External analysis

• Schiebel is arming its Camcopter helicopter UAVs with FZ275 rockets, up to 10 on board. The company cites experience countering Russian EW in Donbas and secure data transmission without external satellite providers. This contrasts with the Ukrainian dependence on Starlink discussed on Telegram (source).

• Lockheed Martin is developing the airborne HPM system (high-power microwave weapon) MORFIUS X-Rotor, designed to handle more than 50 UAVs per sortie, and the PAC-3 ACE interceptor, half the cost of the MSE. Most of the programs are not yet ready for service (source).

• Slovenia's Valhalla Turrets has built the Skythunder counter-drone turret: a 20-mm M197 plus 70-mm rockets. It is a development of the Mangart 25, whose prototypes were tested in Ukraine. The manufacturer's conclusion matches Ukrainian experience: SAMs against cheap drones are economically unviable (source).

• An analysis of In-Q-Tel links the CIA's early investments in mapping to Niantic's 3D scans. Visual positioning has been trained on this data, which is exactly what strike drones need under GPS jamming. Ukraine's Salamandra addresses the same task on a small scale (source).

• A former Google Maps manager shows that combining satellite imagery, AIS, ADS-B and GPS degradation data with a swarm of AI agents yields near-state-level intelligence. The barrier for OSINT (open-source intelligence) has dropped sharply, and AIS spoofing in the Black Sea is a response precisely to this (source).

• Saab Australia has released the cloud-based Allied Mission System platform for managing space operations with AI-driven anomaly detection (source).

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8. ↗37 · 👁1206 · @RuporOfBattle — 📣📣📣📣📣📣 Digital communications and video frequency selection: TAF Industries unveiled an updated…
9. ↗16 · 👁523 · @theaterVD — 🚛🇫🇷 France has ordered four SAMP/T NG air defense systems The French Defense Procurement Agency…
10. ↗83 · 👁2776 · @texBPLA — US scientists have developed an autonomous drone that can track runners in…