Russia is switching to the use of inexpensive Molniya strike UAVs
Across all fronts in the immediate combat zone, the enemy has been observed making a widespread shift from expensive strike drones to low-cost alternatives such as the Molniya.
Serhiy Beskrestnov, a communications specialist and advisor to the Minister of Defense with the call sign Flash, spoke about the enemy’s new tactics and the challenges they pose for Ukrainian electronic warfare systems.
According to the expert, Molniya drones remain difficult to detect by radar stations due to their low flight altitude and the specific materials used in their hulls. This complicates the work of anti-aircraft drones, which do not always have time to identify and engage the target. The long range of the Russian UAV’s video channel is ensured by powerful transmitters and directional antennas, which requires Ukrainian manufacturers to rapidly deploy electronic warfare (EW) systems such as Shchit along the front lines.
Despite the availability of systems to jam control channels, improving the means of detecting enemy remote control frequencies remains critically important. Serhiy Flesh emphasized that Russia is aware of the capabilities of Ukrainian electronic warfare systems, which is why it employs pseudo-random, wide-band frequency hopping. This Russian approach increases the difficulty of signal jamming, a factor that developers of new domestic countermeasures must take into account.
The use of cheap drones allows the aggressor to carry out massive attacks without significant financial costs. The situation requires an immediate response from the technology sector to ensure the protection of frontline units from Russian attacks. Effective countermeasures against the “Molniya” system are possible only through a comprehensive combination of detection systems and active electronic warfare jamming capabilities.
Previously, the Ukrainian Armed Forces struck drone control centers in the Korovyakovka and Tyotkino districts of the Kursk region of the Russian Federation, a "Molniya" drone control center near Dobrolyubivka in the Kharkiv region, and command and observation posts near the temporarily occupied town of Zatyshne in the Donetsk region and Vysokoye in the Belgorod region of the Russian Federation.
Missiles struck a "Molniya" drone manufacturing plant in Taganrog
