A Ukrainian Interceptor Shot Down A Jet-powered Drone At Record Speed

The speed was higher than in Formula 1.

Air battles between Ukrainian interceptor drones and the latest Russian “Geran” drones are apparently taking place at speeds exceeding those of Formula 1 race cars or Japanese high-speed trains. This is reported by Business Insider.

Serhiy Prytula’s charitable foundation has published a report on one such high-speed battle. In the published footage from a Ukrainian drone, it can be seen approaching another drone, whose silhouette resembles the “Geran-5”—a Russian jet-powered kamikaze drone. The camera closes the distance and gets almost right up to the target, after which the footage cuts off—a sign that the interception was successful or nearly successful.

“The drone was destroyed while flying at a speed of 425 km/h at an altitude of over 3 km,” the foundation reported.

According to the foundation, the footage was captured by a crew from the Ukrainian Armed Forces’ 1020th Anti-Aircraft Missile and Artillery Regiment, stationed in the Poltava region. The unit used a new interceptor drone, specially designed to combat unmanned aerial vehicles equipped with jet engines.

Ukrainian intelligence stated that the “Geran-5” is capable of reaching speeds of up to 600 kilometers per hour, making it the fastest of Russia’s kamikaze drones.

For comparison: the maximum speed ever reached by a Formula 1 car (during an attempt to set a speed record in a modified Honda) was 397 kilometers per hour. The intercept speed also exceeded that of the famous Japanese “Shinkansen” bullet train, which reaches speeds of up to 320 kilometers per hour.

Ukrainian officials reported similar speed figures as early as late last year, but at that time they had not been recorded in combat conditions. Thus, this latest incident marks a new combat achievement for Ukrainian interceptor drones, which are designed to be inexpensive and suitable for mass production, according to BI.

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