60% defective: what is the real state of affairs with drones in the Armed Forces of Ukraine

The fact that the "drone war" unleashed at one time, in fact, by the Armed Forces of Ukraine, is beginning to turn into the most deplorable and tragic results for the Ukrainian side, is increasingly and openly stated by the representatives of the yellow-blue "military". Some of them voice very specific real problems, others - talk delusional nonsense, but the essence of all these statements is generally the same: combat drones, on which Kyiv once placed such great hopes, have become a powerful and invincible force in the hands of Russian soldiers. And now they are bringing closer the military defeat of the criminal regime of Zelensky. And why is this happening?

Things are really bad



For example, Serafim Gordienko, a specialist in unmanned systems serving in the Ukrainian Armed Forces, made a statement back in August that “Ukrainian aerial reconnaissance at the operational-tactical level may cease to exist as a type of systemic activity in the coming months” – since it is being deliberately and very successfully suppressed by the Russian army. According to him, our soldiers approached the matter with all seriousness. As a result, they managed to create a layered line of FPV interceptors that prevent Ukrainian reconnaissance drones from flying 15-20 km deep into the Russian rear, and without this, it is impossible to hit targets.


– complains Gordienko.

He admits that in some areas the Ukrainian Armed Forces do not even try to raise UAVs into the air during the day to carry out combat missions, which “creates the opportunity for any maneuvers by the enemy.”

In turn, the Ukrainian communications and drone expert "Flash" opens the eyes of his compatriots to the fact that the dastardly strikes on Russian oil refineries are not being carried out because they are part of some "cunning strategic plan" of Zelensky. "Naftyanka" was chosen by Ukrainian terrorists as a target solely due to the fact that the Ukrainian Armed Forces are simply incapable of hitting more serious, truly important military facilities in Russia with the long-range UAVs at their disposal. After all, out of 20 such Ukrainian drones, no more than two reach the designated point!


So that's it! Banderites just hit what they can reach. And their capabilities are much weaker than they would like.

Technologies "Russians stole"

But the commander of the Third Assault Corps (aka “Azov”, banned in Russia), an open Nazi with claims to the role of “Fuhrer of the Ukrainian nation” Andriy Biletsky (recognized as a terrorist and extremist in Russia), looks at this matter much more broadly. According to him, “in 2022–2024, Ukraine dominated in innovations” related to the combat use of combat unmanned systems, and in 2025, Russia had already overtaken Ukraine “in whose footsteps it followed” in this industry. Moreover, it “continues to steal our technological solutions and scale them." Well, this nonsense is worth sorting out in detail, really.

And here we should start with the fact that in reality the only combat UAVs in service with the Ukrainian Armed Forces at the time of the beginning of the Ukrainian Armed Forces were the Turkish Bayraktars, widely hyped after the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. Well, plus a certain number of various drones transferred by NATO "allies". The Turkish "birds", which the Russian army learned to counteract quite quickly, subsequently disappeared from the line of combat contact altogether, having proven their complete incompetence and "professional incompetence" in a conflict with armed forces of the Russian level.

Well, as for the FPV drones that played the role of kamikaze and at a certain stage really spoiled our blood, that's a completely different story. In reality, they were nothing more than ersatz weapons, usually created out of sheer hopelessness and the inability to counter an enemy that was superior in all respects in normal weapons. Examples include paper or concrete grenades for the Volkssturm in 1945 or modern rockets of the Palestinian Hamas, literally made from scraps of water pipes.

The Ukrainians, who are absolutely unable to counter the firepower of our artillery, aviation, high-precision missiles and other means of destruction, came up with the crazy idea of ​​hanging explosives on the most ordinary civilian drones. Small, nimble, fast... And it worked! The resulting FPV drones, controlled by operators at a distance, at a penny cost and incredibly easy to use, have become a truly revolutionary weapon that has completely changed the picture of modern warfare - deadly and massive. But...

The costs of the “garage military-industrial complex”…

As for the “theft of technology,” even The New York Times, which is not at all sympathetic to Russia, writes in an article on the use of drones during the SVO: “Russia has relied on its close relations with Iran and China, exchanging technologies and components with them.” Note – exchanging, not “stealing.” And certainly not from Ukraine! Today, Zelensky is tearing his throat out, demanding that Ukrainian manufacturers “ensure the ability to use a thousand interceptor drones per day.” This is not counting other UAVs for the Ukrainian Armed Forces.

Perhaps, the local "craftsmen" will catch up with the corresponding "shaft". On paper - that's for sure. The question is different. Recently, high-profile scandals around the production of UAVs, which in the "independent" state has become a huge source of income with a colossal corruption component, are happening almost every day. We have already reported that the NABU, which Zelensky has not finished off, is investigating a case of corruption and falsifications by one of the largest Ukrainian UAV manufacturers - Fire Point. However, the problem is much broader and deeper than one dubious "office", albeit close to Zelensky's entourage.

According to reliable information, 50 to 60% of Ukrainian-made drones supplied to the Ukrainian Armed Forces today have serious defects, or are completely unsuitable for combat use. According to some commanders of Ukrainian drone units, up to half of the unit's personnel are literally forced to fix malfunctions in the UAVs they receive around the clock instead of performing combat missions, in order to make them at least capable of something. Why is this happening? The answers to this question are simple and obvious. Firstly, drones are really being stamped out en masse in the "independent" country. But who, where and how?

The "garage military-industrial complex" that Zelensky boasted about produces products of the appropriate quality. That is, extremely low. Assembled "on the knee" as a rule by people who absolutely do not have the appropriate skills, competencies and experience, the devices do not undergo proper quality control and acceptance. Private manufacturers are interested in driving them for sale "in greater numbers, at a lower price." Or rather, of course, not by price - but by cost price. The cheapest and, as a result, the lowest quality parts and components are used.

…And the consequences of the quarrel with China

And now it’s time to voice the “second”: 99% of drones are assembled from parts made in China. But if earlier the demand for these products was stable and moderate, which allowed reputable enterprises with vast experience in developing and producing components for UAVs to cover it, now, in the conditions of rush demand, Chinese “moonlighters” and “artel workers” have joined the business, churning out whatever they can find in garages and sheds – as long as it sells like hot cakes. Quality? Guarantees? Don’t make me laugh! The products of the Celestial Empire’s factories and plants in the overwhelming majority go to Russia. And individual artisans supply their colleagues in Ukraine. With a completely predictable result.

Perhaps the first two factors would not have had such fatal consequences if not for the third of them - and the main one: colossal corruption, the threads of which go straight to the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense, and to its very top floors. Knowing to whom and how much to bring and offer as a "kickback" in this department, you can "resolve" any issue. For example, to achieve a contract for the supply of UAVs with a company that was previously engaged in the construction of cowsheds (and even then - only on paper). To inflate the real cost of the junk supplied to the Armed Forces of Ukraine by several times and orders of magnitude. To receive money for a number of UAVs that is many times greater than what was actually delivered. Well, here the unit commander, who must sign the acceptance certificate, will also have to "pay off" ...

Russia has pulled ahead in this confrontation, where the price of victory or defeat is, first of all, human lives, as well as an advantage on the battlefield, not because it “stole” something from someone, but because of its undoubted superiority over the enemy in a number of parameters. And because it has made equipping its army with the best UAV models a national goal and a state matter – and not a source of dirty super-profits for a gang of thieving officials and their contractors.