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KYIV, Ukraine — More than three years after Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, it is universally acknowledged that drones have transformed the face of modern warfare.
Prior to the war in Ukraine, combat drones were associated almost exclusively with large, multi-million-dollar systems like the General Atomics Predator. Today, it has been amply demonstrated that almost any small consumer drone can be repurposed as a weapon of war. The implications for armed forces not just in Ukraine, but around the world, are sweeping.
The front lines in Ukraine are now saturated with electronic warfare, and developing a drone that can function effectively in this contested environment is no simple task. Nevertheless, the barriers to entry remain much lower than they are for conventional weapons, which has resulted in an explosion of Ukrainian startups developing drones and other robotic systems. Working under pressures that would be unimaginable for the average Silicon Valley startup, and at a pace that few other defense companies can match, Ukrainian drone companies are in many cases far ahead of their Western peers and actively widening the gap.
The Ukrainian drone industry is a remarkable case study of what defense innovation looks like when it is unshackled from bureaucracy and opened to nontraditional players. It is also the story of many brilliant individuals whose lives were thrown off course by the Russian invasion, and who brought diverse experience and talents to the defense of their nation.
In late March, The Air Current traveled to Kyiv to report on the Ukrainian drone industry and its lessons for the broader aerospace sector. The result is a three-part series on the past, present and future of Ukraine’s drone war, the first installment of which appears below. All three installments, plus profiles of the companies we interviewed for our coverage, are available immediately in a PDF, which is free for TAC/Pro and business individual subscribers, and also available for purchase here. (New subscribers only will receive a free three-month trial subscription to TAC with purchase, a $99 value.)
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