Drones for Ukraine

Together, we have purchased

246

reconnaissance drones for Ukraine’s defenders, including 130 with thermal cameras.

US President Trump is cozying up to the war criminal and terrorist Putin, while populists applaud him and unanimously proclaim the arrival of world peace. Meanwhile, in eastern Ukraine, Russian attacks and attempts to seize further territory continue, regardless of their own losses.

And what about us? With the help of good people, we provide the defenders with eyes in the sky – reconnaissance drones that enable them to spot the enemy in time and neutralize them.

Together, we have raised

€697,279.23SUPPORT

“We keep an eye on things, but we don’t really have time for politics. We are focused entirely on our work- which means defending our positions and destroying as many Russians as possible. It’s interesting that people far behind the lines seem to be more emotionally invested in this than we are, here on the front,” says Styopa, commander of the drone company in the 1st Battalion of the Azov Brigade.

“We made it through 2022, and we survived a similar disruption in ammunition supplies back in 2023. Fortunately, we have plenty of ammo now. The real challenge is getting it effectively onto the target,” adds a drone operator known by the call sign ‘Hutsul.’ And that is where drones come in. Drones have come to dominate the battlefield, and their application is truly extensive. The way they are deployed has evolved in a manner similar to the historical development of the role of air power in military operations. Initially – and they remain vital for this – they were used for reconnaissance and the coordination of operations at the tactical level. Today, artillery crews and tank units cannot imagine operating without fire adjustment provided by reconnaissance drones. “We don’t need tons of shells. With the help of drones, our firing accuracy is nearly twice as high. Just recently, we managed to score 28 hits with 28 rounds – a 100% success rate,” says 26-year-old drone operator Artem – fittingly nicknamed ‘Komar’ (Mosquito) – with a note of pride.

Then, drones began to be used to drop bombs – initially just modified conventional munitions, but later, devices developed and manufactured specifically for drones. Next came kamikaze FPV drones. These are the most effective and the most feared. „You can hide from artillery. You get behind an obstacle, and you’re relatively safe. But you can’t escape an FPV drone. It will find you, even in an underground shelter,“ says military chaplain Saňa from the 109th Brigade.

Today, drones are also used for highly specific tasks. For instance, they drop supplies to soldiers on the front lines when ground-based resupply is impossible – precisely because of enemy FPV drones. In the Azov Brigade, there was a recent incident involving a severely wounded soldier. He had suffered massive blood loss, and evacuation was not possible. Using a Mavic drone, they dropped units of blood to a medic, thereby saving the soldier’s life.

The pinnacle of this evolution, for now, is the „interceptor“ FPV kamikaze drone. These are small, agile, and fast craft equipped with an explosive charge. Their mission is to hunt down and destroy enemy reconnaissance and bomber drones – which can carry payloads of up to 35 kilograms.

For soldiers, the DJI Mavic 3T and DJI Matrice 4T drones are the most valuable. They are primarily used for reconnaissance and locating the enemy. A camera with 28x zoom allows for operations from a relatively safe distance, enabling the identification of targets for artillery or FPV attack drones. Thanks to a thermal imaging camera, they can operate effectively even at night or in conditions of poor visibility. In winter, aerial reconnaissance can even detect the enemy solely by the heat signature of their shelter.

Mavic and Matrice drones can also be used to drop small munitions, but FPV drones are preferred for this task whenever possible. „While a Mavic or Matrice is more precise and features a better camera than most FPV drones, it costs many times more. We have to plan our operations to be not only successful but also cost-effective,“ concludes Stiopa, a member of the Azov unit.

We have delivered dozens of drones to the defenders of Ukraine, purchased with funds from donors in Slovakia. These „Slovak“ drones are currently in use with the following units:

• 10th Mountain Assault Brigade „Edelweiss“
• 12th Special Purpose Brigade „Azov“
• 20th Unmanned Systems Brigade „K2“
• 25th Airborne Brigade „Sicheslav“
• 35th Marine Brigade „Admiral Mykhailo Ostrogradskyi“
• 36th Marine Brigade „Admiral Mykhailo Bilinskyi“
• 47th Mechanized Brigade „Magura“
• 53rd Mechanized Brigade „Volodymyr Monomakh“
• 56th Motorized Brigade „Mariupol“
• 102nd Territorial Defense Brigade
• 114th Territorial Defense Brigade
• 109th Territorial Defense Brigade
• 124th Territorial Defense Brigade
• 241st Territorial Defense Brigade
• 15th Mobile Border Detachment „Steel Border“
• 253rd Separate Assault Battalion „Arei“
• Georgian Legion
• Reconnaissance Unit „Perun“
• Military Intelligence „HUR“
• Gruzínska légia
• prieskumná jednotka PERÚN
• vojenská rozviedka „HUR“

Together, we have raised

€697,279.23SUPPORT