In Ukraine, small enterprises are trying to create one million drones in order to cover the shortage of ammunition. About this the The Wall Street Journal.
As noted in the publication, Ukraine is trying to compensate for the shortage of ammunition due to the delay in aid from the West by producing a "million dollar army" of drones.
The WSJ says Ukraine currently lacks a modern arms industry to support the military effort, and it will take years and billions of dollars before Kyiv "can produce the artillery and missile systems it needs on a large scale."
"Factories" for the production of drones in Ukraine
“But drones that can be assembled from commercially available parts and cost only a few hundred dollars each are relatively cheap and easy to manufacture. Currently, self-made factories are opening all over Ukraine, which produce thousands of unmanned aerial vehicles every month." - writes WSJ.
Then, according to the authors of the material, the corresponding drones are delivered to the front, where soldiers attach explosives and throw them into Russian trenches and armored vehicles. The UAV is controlled by an operator using a controller and wearing goggles that allow him to see what the drone's camera sees.
"With our economy, we cannot make tanks. Our solution is to create drones." Mykola Havryliuk, executive director of Sparrow Avia, a drone production company, said.
The publication emphasized that drones cannot cause as much damage as artillery shells or mortars, but Ukrainian troops use them to strike at the "weak points" of armored vehicles and target Russian trucks and enemy manpower, which "makes it difficult for Moscow to move to Ukrainian trenches".
In addition, the journalists add that due to frequent Russian missile strikes, Ukrainian drone manufacturers are reducing their operations, having "several dozen workers in one building and several dozen more in another" to hide their work from the enemy. At the same time, most parts are made on 3D printers.
The publication also recalled that the Minister of Digital Transformation of Ukraine, Mykhailo Fedorov, stated that Ukraine is on track to achieve the goal set by President Volodymyr Zelensky at the end of last year, regarding the production of at least one million drones in 2024, which is more than 100 times more than in 2022. .
According to the WSJ, Ukraine currently produces 62 different types of drones, and manufacturers are working on new models that can fly further, carry heavier munitions and evade Russian electronic warfare equipment.
The Wall Street Journal visited one such facility, which produces about 3000 FPV drones per month and plans to increase production to 10 drones per month in the future. The company also plans to expand its staff, but only hires friends and relatives of current employees, fearing the location of the plant would be revealed, making it a target for Russian missiles.
According to the CEO of the company, the Ukrainian government buys about half of the drones every month. The rest are bought by volunteers and local authorities and delivered to military units.
One of the most popular developments of the company is a 7-inch drone capable of carrying 1,3 kg of explosives. Although it does not fly very far, it is more maneuverable and, very importantly, cheap. However, the company has also developed a larger shock drone capable of carrying about 9 kg of explosives.
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