Russian strike drones of the Shahed and “Gerbera” types have recently mostly been bypassing Kherson. This may be related to the effective work of Ukrainian mobile groups that destroy them using high-speed interceptor drones.
This was reported in an interview with Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty by the commander of the UAV interceptor battery of the 34th Separate Marine Brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Darya Nikolenko.
According to her, in April alone the unit destroyed more than fifty Russian drones that flew over Kherson.
“However many passed over us, in 98% of cases we hit everything that flies over our city. Therefore, today it is very frustrating that a very large number have now gone to western Ukraine, to central Ukraine. And they all went, bypassing Kherson so that we would not reach them. They understand that we have means here, they understand that we have people here who meet them,” said Nikolenko.
She explained that to destroy strike drones Ukrainian forces use not ordinary FPV drones, but special high-speed interceptor drones capable of reaching speeds of up to 170 kilometers per hour and catching up with airborne targets.
According to the commander, FPV drones are mainly used against cheaper Russian UAVs, in particular the “Molniya” type. In contrast, to fight the “Shaheds” and “Gerberas” they use air-defense interceptors STING (day and night), Striker mini and P1SUN, equipped with a warhead weighing about half a kilogram.