Russia is likely using a new version of the "Lancet" suicide drone against Kyiv's forces in the war-torn country, according to a new assessment, as unmanned technology continues to dominate across the front lines in the east and south of Ukraine.
Russian sources claimed that Moscow's troops have been using "Izdeliye-53" weapons on a limited scale since around October 21, the U.S.-based Institute for the Study of War (ISW) think tank said in its latest analysis.
The sources said the newer versions of these drones have an "automatic guidance system that can distinguish types of targets and increase strike success rates," the ISW said on Saturday. The Kremlin's forces are reportedly testing the uncrewed kamikaze drones "for mass synchronized swarm strikes."
Russia has made extensive use of cheap suicide drones, also known as "kamikaze" drones, since it began its invasion in February 2022. Ukrainian artillery soldiers fighting in Ukraine's counteroffensive told Reuters in late June that the Lancets were one of Moscow's key threats after Russia upped their use in recent months.
With each Lancet thought to have a price tag of around $35,000, they are a more cost-effective way for Russia to strike Ukrainian targets than using missiles. One-way uncrewed aerial vehicles (UAVs) could also be used to mount swarm attacks on Ukrainian targets and overwhelm air defenses.
However, the "Izdeliye-53" is thought to only have a payload between 3 and 5 kilograms (6 and 11 pounds), which may fall short of being able to "significantly damage most critical military targets," according to the ISW.
Newsweek has reached out to the Russian Defense Ministry for comment via email.
The Ukraine war has seen an acceleration of drone technology development, with both Kyiv and Moscow funneling resources into the production of UAVs. Kyiv has built up its "army of drones," and its drone tsar—Digital Transformation Minister Mykhailo Fedorov—has said that the country is on the path to becoming "a world leader in drones production."
The Lancets are described by manufacturers ZALA as a "new intelligent multipurpose weapon capable of autonomously locating and striking a given target." It creates its "own navigation field and does not require any ground or marine infrastructure," according to the company.
The most well-known of kamikaze drones used by Russia are the Iranian-made Shahed loitering munitions, which Moscow has widely deployed across Ukraine in the 20 months of all-out war. Kyiv's military said on Sunday that the country's air defenses shot down five Shahed drones overnight.
The Shahed drones (also known by their Russian names of Geran-1 and Geran-2) are known for the low buzzing sound they make upon approach.
They are capable of carrying a warhead that shatters or explodes when it reaches the intended target. The smaller Shahed-131 has a shorter maximum range than the larger 136, thought to be around 550 miles for the former and around 1,200 miles for the latter.
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Ellie Cook is a Newsweek security and defense reporter based in London, U.K. Her work focuses largely on the Russia-Ukraine ... Read more
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