After the Defense Forces began effectively using anti-aircraft FPV drones to counter russian reconnaissance UAVs like the Zala and Orlan, the enemy started exploring ways to protect its drones. These anti-aircraft FPV drones have proven highly effective, downing hundreds of enemy UAVs.
Eventually, the russians began developing countermeasures. Initially, they theorized whether FPV drone detectors or low-power electronic warfare systems could effectively defend against anti-aircraft FPV drones.
Later, they started implementing these ideas in practice, such as installing rear-view cameras that, in theory, would allow operators to detect and respond to threats in advance. They also experimented with deceptive tactics, like painting Ukrainian Air Force insignia on their UAVs.
Despite the crude nature of some attempts, the russians quickly arrived at a more sophisticated solution: using machine vision and artificial intelligence to autonomously perform evasive maneuvers against Ukrainian anti-aircraft drones. Earlier this year, a captured Zala UAV equipped with such an “evasion” system was analyzed by specialists at Scream Industries.
According to expert Serhii Flash Beskrestnov, the russians have now begun mass-producing Zala reconnaissance drones with built-in countermeasures against anti-air FPV drones.
“One Zala was downed while actively maneuvering to evade an interceptor drone. It features a CSI camera with a ribbon cable, an HDMI connection, and a dedicated converter with a separate power supply. Previously, only the central daytime or night module was connected – or both simultaneously. In the new version, there are two HDMI ports: one for the central camera and another for detecting interceptor drones,” Scream Industries experts report.
The specialist also consulted with Ukrainian military personnel and reviewed footage of the system in action. In the video, the enemy UAV successfully evades an attack by a Ukrainian anti-aircraft drone. While it is too early to assess the full effectiveness of this technology, it may help the russians reduce UAV losses to some extent.
One potential countermeasure, as noted by Flash, could be integrating machine vision into Ukrainian FPV drones. An intermediate solution might involve deploying multiple anti-aircraft drones against a single target. Another option could be equipping FPV drones with shotguns.