Ukrainian drone unit reveals the secrets and techniques of searching Putin’s forces

When I used to be a child, I used to be fascinated by the Philip Ok. Dick novel ‘Second Variety’. It begins with two troopers sitting of their bunker, watching a single enemy infantryman approaching their place. 

Seconds after, the underground ‘claws’ drones reveal themselves and use sharp blades to tear the intruder to items. The thought of a human life being taken proper in entrance of you by man-made robots was blood-chilling.

I couldn’t ever think about that 30 years later, I might be sitting in a bunker and watching an identical image, and each the bunker and the image could be as actual because it will get.

Our bunker is only a mile from the frontline, and it’s properly hidden underground. It can most likely survive a direct hit from a 500-kilo KAB [Russian air-guided bomb]; nobody would wish to verify if that’s true, in fact. But likelihood is excessive, as Russians continually use their air sovereignty and KAB’s because the final argument, as much as 10 instances a day.

I’m a visitor right here, however the bunker is a short lived dwelling for 4 military males. It is provided with 4 bunk beds, Starlink, packing containers with ammunition, and meals.

An operator sits on the desk and screens on-line streaming from the drones. Casually clicking the mouse and selecting one reside stream over one other. Another two troopers are enjoying backgammon. The fourth is cleansing his AK rifle.

‘Look guys, that is likely to be fascinating!’ calls the operator. All of us are glued to the display. A drone detected a bunch of 4 Russian troopers.

‘Too unhealthy it already ran out of grenades, so it could take longer’, says the operator. Even with out grenades, a drone could be lethal for the enemies, because the operator is aware of their coordinates.

In a couple of seconds, artillery hits close to one of many black figures on the display. Other figures seemed unhurt and tried to make their manner out, however the second artillery strike will get them first.

Soldiers are yelling, greeting one another, and cheering. Just like whenever you rejoice an surprising however long-awaited purpose from the workforce you help.

It will not be a soccer recreation, in fact; these live individuals. They had been. And they aren’t anymore as a result of they got here to kill us.

‘I noticed piles of lifeless our bodies in de-occupied areas. Women and youngsters. Some had been lacking limbs, some had their stomachs minimize open, and a few had their eyes gouged out. They had been all bare,’ a soldier from the bunker explains.

‘The Russians set them on fireplace, and indicators present most of the victims had been nonetheless alive and died from the smoke poisoning. After that, I’ve no mercy for Russians, and I cheer each time I see the lifeless one.’

The frontline is infested with drones. If there’s a soldier near it, he might be detected and more than likely killed. Drones are as lethal because the claws from the Philip Ok. Dick story. They can see in infrared, and so they have thermal cameras.

We are watching one other reside stream. Two Russian troopers are marching their method to Ukrainian positions. A grenade thrown from a drone met considered one of them and tore him to items. His comrade, who does not look damage, as a substitute of operating away, walks in circles.

‘Why is he not attempting to retreat?’. I ask.

‘Because there’s a barrage detachment ready for him. He is lifeless anyway; he’s most likely on the lookout for the quilt’.

Indeed, the soldier discovered an deserted armed navy provider and crawled beneath it. The drone retains hovering round him.

‘Drones are the blood of this conflict. One drone pilot can kill as much as 20 Russians a day. Our champion killed 500 as soon as. Without drones, we are able to do nothing, and they’re disposable. One drone can reside as much as three days right here’, says a soldier.

Meanwhile, a drone discovered one other Russian soldier. He is hiding within the trench. A grenade lands a couple of ft from him. His physique is pierced with the shell’s fragments. He is twitching. Another grenade lands in his abdomen.

‘Would it not be sufficient to make use of only one?’ I ask. ‘He would have most likely died from the primary one.’

‘He most likely would have, however they’re good actors’, a commander replies. ‘Once, our drones hit the group of Russians. By all of the indicators, they had been lifeless; even thermal cameras confirmed their our bodies didn’t emit any warmth. 

‘In a few hours, our group got here to verify on them, and so they began capturing at us. How did they handle to play lifeless and trick the electronics? I don’t know. 

Only two drones are persevering with their obligation. No Russians in sight. Soldiers are again to their backgammon and rifle cleansing routine.

‘So now we’re all the time attempting to double verify.’

I used to be considering that that might have made an ideal warning signal. In Soviet instances, we had a warning signal within the foyer of our buildings saying, ‘Make positive you flip off the electrical energy when leaving’. 

Now think about that drone pilots have this one: ‘Make positive the enemy is lifeless earlier than going to the subsequent goal.’

An operator not glued to the laptop computer anymore checks messages from dwelling.

I’m standing, considering, and attempting to digest what I simply realized and noticed. And a thought creeps into my thoughts: ‘Russians most likely have the identical bunker, the identical livestream, and kill our boys simply the identical.’