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Ukrainian drones deliver robots directly into battle by sea and air
In the latest twist on battlefield innovations, Ukraine has used both flying drone carriers and drone boats to send ground robots armed with weapons or explosives into battle.
The drone-assisted deployments have enabled slower wheeled robots to bypass tough terrain and Russian defenses, and to carry out an unusual robotic amphibious assault on a contested position. Such tactics also showcase the Ukrainian militaryβs ongoing experimentation with using drones and robots to offset a Russian military advantage in manpower while also sparing Ukrainian soldiers from making dangerous assaults.
On July 19, a Russian military Telegram channel posted a video showing a Ukrainian hexacopter drone carrying a ground robot suspended below by a cable, according to the Ukrainian government-run news platform United24. The Russian Telegram channel described the Ukrainian heavy bomber drone as deploying a four-wheeled ARK-1 robot armed with explosive anti-tank mines on the ground where it continued toward Russian military positionsβand apparently generated plenty of outraged comments from pro-Kremlin social media users.


Β© Dmytro Smolienko/ Ukrinform/Future Publishing via Getty Images
Ukrainian drone strikes forced Russia to stop shipping in vital sea corridor
Ukrainian drone strikes have forced Russia to completely halt shipping in the Sea of Azov in less than a week, showing once again how a country without traditional naval power can still effectively blockade maritime corridors.
Ukraineβs Unmanned Systems Forces have flown one-way attack drones to target and strike more than 100 Russian tankers and other ships in total, along with posting video evidence showing such drone strikes occurring every night between July 6 and July 14. The campaign has forced Russia to completely shut down the shipping route that flows from Russiaβs Don River into the Sea of Azov, and to halt all Kerch Strait shipping transits from the Sea of Azov into the Black Sea, according to Reuters reporting.
The shutdown of such maritime lanes has further isolated the Russian-occupied Crimean Peninsula by cutting off seaborne delivery of fuel in particular. Crimea had already been experiencing severe fuel rationing and power outages as Ukraine stepped up its mid- and long-range drone strike campaign on Russian energy infrastructure and supply lines, leaving behind damaged oil refineries with billowing black smoke and burned-out trucks littering highways.


Β© Planet Labs PBC
- Ars Technica - Gadgets
- US seeks cheaper hunter-killer drones after Iran destroys $1B worth of Reapers
US seeks cheaper hunter-killer drones after Iran destroys $1B worth of Reapers
The US military has lost dozens of Reaper drones collectively worth more than $1 billion while carrying out surveillance and attack missions over Iran. Now the Pentagon is seeking large numbers of cheaper drones that can perform such missions despite the expectation that many will be lost in combat.
In a call for industry pitches, the Defense Innovation Unitβs notice described the US militaryβs current reliance on drones and crewed aircraft, each costing more than $30 million, as being βunsustainable against adversaries utilizing layered defenses enabled by increasingly low-cost antiaircraft capabilities.β It envisions deploying more βcost-effectiveβ drones to βoverwhelm enemy air defenses even while experiencing numerous [drone] losses.β
That is, in practice, what Ukraineβs military has been demonstrating with its long- and mid-range strike campaign against Russian supply lines, oil refineries, and various energy or industrial targets within Russia or occupied Ukraine. The Ukrainian campaign has been overwhelming Russiaβs overstretched air defense capabilities by launching hundreds of relatively inexpensive drones and missiles on a daily basis to attack targets far behind the frontlines, while continuing to damage or destroy Russiaβs most sophisticated air defense systems.

