On October 25, specialists from the laboratory for the production of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) of the 123rd brigade of the Southern Group of Forces told Izvestia about the specifics of their work in the special military operation area.
"This laboratory for the production of drones and the people who will control them is located in close proximity to the line of combat contact — about 15 kilometers from the enemy. <...> Nevertheless, we [are] deep underground and practically invulnerable to the enemy," said Izvestia correspondent Egor Kildibekov.
The commander of the company of unmanned systems with the call sign Legion, conducting a tour of the laboratory, where drones are produced and repaired daily, noted that it works both in the interests of the unit itself and in the interests of the entire brigade. He began his story by describing the equipment delivery room, where all the equipment is delivered to the center. According to him, the equipment is accounted for there, its further distribution, and fiber-optic coils are stored.
Then he showed the laboratory itself, where the preparation and improvement of drones takes place. Drones are being repaired there, as well as their "firmware" is being configured, which allows the devices to achieve their goals.
"This is a program to <...> show us a picture. We can also use it (the device. — Ed.) to ask for a reset, to make it fly and drop, for example, a grenade," explained one of the specialists with the call sign Jew.
This procedure, according to the master, makes it possible to stop attempts by failing units of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) to "intercept" control of a Russian UAV or knock it off course.
"We are currently engaged in active combat operations here. And it feels like they (APU. — Ed.) incur losses, both in manpower and in operators (UAVs. — Ed.) they have a big disadvantage in this right now. We check their drones, the drones are made in a hurry. Let's put it bluntly: even half of them don't explode," Legion continued his story.
Then Izvestia was shown the work of a workshop equipped with 3D printers, where so-called "dump drones" are being created, capable, according to the company commander, of not only firing projectiles, but also delivering various cargoes to Russian units, ranging from provisions to ammunition.
A specialist with the call sign Shaman, who is involved in this workshop, added that a polymer printer is also necessary in order to repair damaged UAVs, as it creates all the necessary parts for this, which are also necessary for a new domestic development — drono-zhdunov.
"They sit on such legs so as not to get hurt. <...> They have recently appeared. Started (production. — Ed.), everything went well and we are using it on a large scale. <...> He needs to wait for the opponent at a certain point. It is better to land a "zhdun" than a "bird" (that's what drones are called in the army. — Ed.) will hang in the sky," he said.
The laboratory specialists noted that the Russian UAV units are superior and in some places ahead of the Ukrainian ones, which, in turn, are trying to create UAVs in the likeness of Domestic ones.
Earlier, on October 15, Rosgvardiya fighters destroyed an electronic warfare (EW) crew The Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) near Volchansk. The enemy position was revealed by means of electronic reconnaissance and eliminated by a barrel artillery strike.
