In Ukraine, the mass production of kamikaze drones of the Russian "Lancet" type with a range of 40 kilometres will soon start, says the Minister of Digital Transformation Mykhailo Fedorov.
Serial production of Lancet-type drones will soon start in Ukraine
We have a large number of copters, FPV drones in the 20 km range, but at night it is quite difficult to find a target in the 20 km range. We need to impress at 40 km. Lancet-type drones are quite high-tech, and it took half a year to accelerate the market in this direction, the minister said.
Fedorov emphasized that the first contracts will be signed in the coming weeks. They will get to the front soon after that. There are already cases of using such UAVs by defenders, but they are still isolated.
It is difficult to name specific dates, but within two months, information will begin to appear in the Russian public about how their tanks are on fire, Fedorov said.
"Army of drones" destroys the enemy
The "Army of Drones" project was launched in the summer of 2022 for the smooth procurement of UAVs for the needs of the Defense Forces of Ukraine, their repair, and the training of pilot operators.
In 2023, UAH 40 billion was allocated from the state budget for these needs; in 2024, UAH 48 billion is planned.
On October 9-16, the "Army of Drones" eliminated 428 units of enemy equipment. It was an absolute record.
An absolute record for the "Army of Drones" — AFU fighters hit 428 units of Russian equipment in a week. During the Russian offensive on Avdiivka, drones proved to be very effective in defence and destruction of equipment. So the Russians have lost 101 guns, 88 armoured vehicles, 75 tanks and a lot of other equipment, Fedorov said at the time.
On January 15-29, 26 Russian tanks, 54 armoured fighting vehicles, 85 trucks and 87 invaders were hit by the strike units provided by the "Army of Drones". In addition, the Defense Forces destroyed six self-propelled howitzers, 52 artillery guns, 19 EW units, 309 strongholds, and three MLRS of the Russian occupiers.
