Drones in Modern Military Combat (Ukraine)

[Caballoflaco]

Mag fed shotgun used to shoot down down a Russian FPV drone in Ukraine.
https://twitter.com/@twitter/status/1735583306211541093

[Caballoflaco]

[MENTION=941]TGS[/MENTION] good example of Low level Ukrainian FPVs taking out a Russian squad showing how they often have to slow down and maneuver/turn.

https://twitter.com/@twitter/status/1739774242101600294

Eta: photo of FPV drones.

[Caballoflaco]

Video posted by a Ukrainian soldier of Russians shooting down a UA drone with an old side by side. If you go into the thread he talks a bit about his personal experience with using shotguns against drones.

https://twitter.com/@twitter/status/1752381984821907587

[TCinVA]

Whatever munition is being used in that shotgun appears to offer absolutely zero recoil.

So color me skeptical.

[Caballoflaco]

Whatever munition is being used in that shotgun appears to offer absolutely zero recoil.

So color me skeptical.

He fires one round at first with recoil and the second shot with flames looks like an actual misfire with loose powder burning due to shitty ammo. Who knows if he hit anything.

The interesting part of that thread to me is some of the guys who have used them in combat shared their experiences.

A few of the guys said they‘re effective out to around 50 meters on Mavics.

One said that when the Russians see a shotgun from the drone they’ll get get distance to avoid being shot down, but, that’s still better than nothing.

Another said that Turkish box-mag fed shotguns malfunction if you leave the magazines loaded for too long due to crappy springs.

One dude put an optic on his gun and thought it helped his marksmanship.

There wasn’t any talk about use specifically against FPVs

While limitations of the gauge were acknowledged most seemed to think something was better than nothing, and op would rather see mass issue by the state of a basic pump than more limited purchases of semi-autos or other more complicated guns.

[Cory]

What's the altitude of your clays?

What's the typical operating altitude of a man-packable 4 rotor drone in a foreign combat situation where the 400ft FAA ceiling is not relevant?

[MENTION=13388]Caballoflaco[/MENTION], this is why I'm surprised there's a usefulness for shotguns in anti-drone work. It's pretty easy to operate above the useful envelope of a shotgun.

Garand thumb recently released a video with 2 guys who have been fighting in the Ukraine for 2 years. Drones were discussed, with multiple types/roles described.

First Person View (FPV) drones were described as being very fast, rarely stationary, and having a high pitched noise. Their role is to simply fly into a target and detonate.

Mavic drones were described as a lower whine, with longer loiter time. While they can often drop an explosive, they were described as operating much higher, and sometimes having thermal. It was talkrd about how they can work in teams with FPVs. Essentially bracketing in the FPVs.

Large gas powered drones with very long loiter times at aircraft altitudes were also discussed.

Shotguns were discussed as becoming a common anti-drone tactic. Primary defense from drones was getting into a bunker with fabric over doorways to prevent FPV drones from flying in. They said they're seeing Mossberg 500s with simple birdshot being issued specifically for drones. It wasn't clear what style of drone they were talking about engaging.

[Caballoflaco]

Russian anti-drone troop ca:2024 man-portable EW and a Russian O/U

https://twitter.com/@twitter/status/1764670324799414302

[Caballoflaco]

looks like 1 out of 2 drones that were engaged were shot down.

https://twitter.com/@twitter/status/1828870345345966581

[Caballoflaco]

[MENTION=1481]Redhat[/MENTION] watch this one with the sound on, it’s terrifying (but not graphic). Think sentient claymore or rpg.

https://twitter.com/@twitter/status/1829121347789668515

Last I’ve seen on pricing is smaller FPV drones can be made in a basement workshop for about 400-600 bucks a piece not including the warhead and batteries. Add an additional drone with repeater antenna and the right terrain and I’ve seen reports of effective drone strikes at 17k /10 miles distance.

While I’ve seen incendiaries used by both sides this is the first time I’ve seen this implemented with an agricultural drone. (Both sides try to burn out tree lines where trenches are positioned, the Russians just usually use Arty because they have lots of incendiary shells and rockets still.)

https://twitter.com/@twitter/status/1830564527592624170

[MENTION=22657]MTP[/MENTION] beat me to it.

[HCM]

100%. And speaking of evolving TTPs, this is new to me:

https://kyivindependent.com/thermite-drone/

You might have already seen the footage this past weekend on UKR/RU telegram feeds if you follow those.

Saw that. Yeah.