‘The Kalashnikov is the most effective tool’ – Inside Ukraine’s ‘drone hunter’ unit
Far from the main frontlines, a small Ukrainian “drone hunter” unit spends its days and nights scanning the skies above the frozen outskirts of Sloviansk, trying to spot and shoot down incoming Russian drones before they can strike troops and supply lines. What was once a conventional artillery war has turned into a relentless aerial cat-and-mouse game, with the men now fearing not just the scream of shells but also the constant buzz of unmanned aircraft overhead. Armed with handheld drone detectors and assault rifles, the soldiers rush into position whenever their equipment or instincts pick up a threat, often firing Kalashnikovs at small, fast-moving drones barely visible against the grey sky. Bohdan, commander of an anti-aircraft battery in Ukraine’s 117th Brigade, says shotguns work where drones fly very low, but in his sector they fly higher and faster, making […]
