Ukraine is already mass-producing a self-developed unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) with an armored warhead copied from the Russian Lancet drone, the Kyiv Independent reports.
Ukraine is currently working to produce 1 million military drones each year, some of which would be specially designed to neutralize armored military vehicles. To this end, the Ukrainian military industry has copied one of Russia’s most successful weapons, the ZALA Lancet anti-tank drone.
The official name of the device, dubbed “Ukrolancet” on social media, is not yet known, but it is known that series production started in February this year, that it will be equipped with a 3-kilogram warhead and feature a range of 100 kilometers. The drone can be used to destroy both static and moving targets and has already been used in live operations against a Russian air defense system.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky personally inspected the new technical device and its capabilities. The Ukrainians are expected to produce “several hundred” of them every month.
Due to their limited range and relatively small explosive charge, the Lancet drones are usually used against high-value targets such as military command posts and are preceded by reconnaissance drones. Even close hits, however, do not guarantee the destruction of the intended target.
Russia is reportedly having difficulty manufacturing these drones because they use U.S.-made circuit boards from NVIDIA and AMD. The price of the drones is estimated at around $35,000.
