Viral war video shows Ukrainian interceptor drone killing Russian reconnaissance UAV mid-air | WATCH

The footage of the Russian ZALA being downed by a Ukrainian FPV interceptor was posted by the Deputy Head of the Patrol Police Department, Oleksii Biloshytskyi.

In the video, which is in a first person perspective from the Ukrainian drone, the ZALA is approached from above and then goes out of the frame. The drone is then seen descending with a white parachute.

 

The video was captioned on Telegram as “FPV air defence operators from the Khyzhak brigade destroyed a Russian ZALA drone — an expensive reconnaissance system the enemy used to coordinate attacks. But this time, it failed. A single precise detonation by an FPV drone — and the enemy device goes down.”

 

The First-Person View drone was operated by personnel from the Khyzhak brigade, a Ukrainian Special Police Force. The video shows that the interceptor unmanned aerial vehicle used was part of the Dronopad project. The project was initiated by the Come Back Alive Foundation and was developed in order to intercept and destroy reconnaissance drones. The project specifically targets reconnaissance drones such as the ZALA.

 

Biloshytskyi said that the FPV air defense represents a new era in the battle for the skies, according to the Kyiv Post. The Ukrainian interceptor drones are cheap, publicly funded and reusable. The FPVs are steered with a headset and can even carry explosives for a targeted attack.  

 According to Ukrainian reports, about 650 Russian drones have been intercepted over four months in the Kyiv region. 

                                                

Kyiv had launched a new interception system project called “Clear Sky” designed to neutralise Russian drones on Friday. The initiative is being implemented under Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, and $6.5 million has been allocated for the project. The pilot phase of the project had already been proven effective according to Ukrainian state media.           

While the Dronopad project is hailed as successful, a recent report showed that Russian drones are outsmarting the country’s air defenses. Russia has launched a swarm of drones at Kyiv that can get past its defenses, according to the BBC. Ukraine has been ramping up its production of drones, with hundreds of different companies and models being launched every day. 

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