Ukraine's mobile units: Countering drone threats with ingenuity
During the night of July 17 to 18, 2024, Ukrainians managed to shoot down 16 Shahed 131/136 drones and two cruise missiles from the Kh-59/69 family. Here’s how mobile intervention groups are handling this threat.
The Commander of Ukraine’s Air Force, Lieutenant General Mykola Oleschuk, posted on Telegram about the downing of 18 out of 19 targets. From the Kursk area, 16 Shahed-131/136 drones were reported to have flown in, and from the south, three cruise missiles, two of which were Kh-59/69. It seems only the Kh-35 broke through.
The defence against the attack involved anti-aircraft systems, units using electronic warfare systems, and light mobile intervention groups. The latter is valuable for Ukraine in combating simple targets such as Shahed drones.
Mobile intervention groups — a simple solution to a persistent problem
Iranian drones pose a severe threat to Ukrainian society, prompting authorities to deploy missile defence systems that could be used elsewhere. Due to their low cost, combating these drones is economically feasible only with specialized systems like Gepard, ZSU-23-4 Shilka, or 2K22 Tunguska.
However, these are not available in sufficient numbers, so with great luck and a distance of about 1 kilometre or less, small arms can be used to destroy drones. In response to shortages, Ukrainians have created special teams equipped with machine guns and vehicles with spotlights.
These are often large-calibre machine guns like the Browning M2 calibre .50 BMG, Soviet-era DSzK, or NSW calibre 12.7x108 mm. Still, there are also anti-aircraft guns like the M75 calibre 20 mm or vintage Maxim M1910/30 machine guns.
A skilled shooter can effectively shoot down drones by adding thermal sights and, for example, a laser rangefinder to these weapons, which allows accurate distance measurement to a target. Shaheds are simple constructions flying in a straight line at a constant speed, making it highly likely that shooting with a lead will be successful.
These groups often possess several handheld anti-aircraft systems, such as the FIM-92 Stinger or similar systems for more challenging targets, such as cruise missiles.
Such groups in pickups are in constant radio contact. They are dispatched to regions where radars or, for example, a network of microphones described by journalist Łukasz Michalik detected incoming drones. Thanks to such groups in pickups, Ukraine can utilize more expensive anti-aircraft systems like NASAMS or IRIS-T to target more brutal objects like Kh-101 missiles instead of wasting costly missiles on drones made from hobbyist parts.
