Ukraine-Russia war: Cheap, lethal Bayraktar Turkish drones are scoring hits on the battlefield – and online
- Turkey has supplied Ukraine with Bayraktar TB2 unmanned aerial vehicles, which carry lightweight, laser-guided bombs
- Aerial videos of the destruction of Russian armoured vehicles has become a key tool for Ukraine’s information war
Despite three weeks of Russian bombardment, Ukraine has kept up a stiff defence of its cities by using Turkish-made drones to carry out pop-up attacks on the invaders with a lethal effectiveness that has surprised Western military experts.
The Bayraktar TB2 unmanned aerial vehicles, which carry lightweight, laser-guided bombs, normally excel in low-tech conflicts, and Turkey has sold them to more than a dozen countries, including Azerbaijan, Libya, Morocco and Ethiopia.
The drones have carried out unexpectedly successful attacks in the early stages of Ukraine’s conflict with Moscow, before the Russians were able to set up their air defences in the battlefield, said Jack Watling of the London-based Royal United Services Institute.
“The (TB2s) shouldn’t be making a meaningful impact because they are medium altitude, slow-flying aircraft with a large electromagnetic signature and a large radar cross-section. And the Russians have very capable air defence systems, so they should be being shot down. The terrain is very open and gives good radar coverage,” Watling added.
He said Ukrainian forces “have been essentially flying in at a low-level and then coming up and raiding with them. So striking targets of opportunity”.
Over time, as the Russians get more organised and push out their air defences, Watling said “the freedom to employ those drones is diminishing. And so what we are now seeing is that the Ukrainians are having to be careful as to when they commit them”.