Russia has significantly escalated its use of jet-powered drones, deploying them daily throughout August, according to BBC Verify analysis of Ukrainian Air Force data. These upgraded Geran drones, cruising at over 300mph, are much faster than older models and surpass the speed of Ukraine's current interceptors, making them considerably harder to shoot down. This shift has led to a dramatic increase in drone attacks, from 350 in June to 1,600 in July and 2,800 in August, with jet-powered models sometimes outnumbering slower drones during nightly attacks.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has condemned these escalating attacks, describing an unfolding "horror" over Kyiv. Earlier this year, Ukraine achieved a 94% interception rate against long-range drones, but the speed of the new jet-powered variants has significantly reduced this success rate to around 60%, according to Ukrainian Air Force spokesman Yurii Ihnat. Major General Vadym Skibitskyi, Ukraine's deputy head of military intelligence, has stated that new interceptor missiles capable of matching the drones' speed are desperately needed.
The adoption of jet-powered drones also offers Russia an economic advantage, blurring the lines between these munitions and more expensive cruise missiles due to their increased speed and maneuverability. While not yet as advanced as cruise missiles, with shorter attack ranges and smaller warheads, their proliferation is a key factor in Russia's current strategy of complex attacks involving hundreds of drones and missiles about once a week. These assaults, which often combine a variety of munitions including jet-powered and decoy drones with ballistic missiles, have led to falling interception rates for Ukraine, partly due to a global shortage of advanced air defense systems.
