Russia launched a massive drone attack on several Ukrainian regions on the night of September 2–3, with jet-powered drones accounting for about half of the UAVs used, according to Ukraine’s Air Force. The growing use of drones capable of speeds above 400 km/h is making them harder to intercept and forcing Ukraine to develop new countermeasures.
The number of Russian jet drones used in attacks has increased sharply. Ukrainian defence technology adviser Serhiy “Flash” Beskrestnov said Russia deployed about 1,500 such drones in July and 2,500 in August. As Russia has shifted toward round-the-clock drone attacks, their speed has created additional difficulties for Ukrainian air defence.
Traditional mobile anti-drone groups and interceptor drones designed to pursue Shahed-type UAVs are largely ineffective against the faster targets. Ground-based systems such as S-300, Buk, NASAMS and IRIS-T can intercept them, but Ukraine does not have enough systems to cover all potential targets, while their missiles are significantly more expensive than the Russian drones.
Ukraine is currently relying mainly on fighter aircraft and electronic jamming. Defence Minister Yevheniy Khmara said on August 30 that four potential interceptor drones had been tested, with the aim of selecting the most effective designs and scaling production to thousands of units. Experts also say future interceptors will need automatic target detection and guidance, as well as affordable radars.
Electronic warfare remains one of the main ways to counter large numbers of drones. Tymofiy Yurkov, co-founder of a Ukrainian counter-drone systems producer, said jamming navigation is currently the most effective defence against mass attacks, arguing that most Shahed-type drones fail to reach their targets because of jamming rather than physical interception.
Russia has been developing jet-powered drones for several years. The Geran-4 can reportedly reach 500 km/h, while the Geran-5 can fly at 450–600 km/h and carry a 90-kg warhead. The S8000 Banderol, which Ukraine classifies as a drone, can reach 550–600 km/h, carry a 150-kg warhead and travel up to 400 km.
The increasing use of these systems is likely to put further pressure on Ukraine’s limited air-defence resources. Kyiv is seeking cheaper and faster interceptor technologies that can be produced at scale, while electronic warfare is expected to remain a key tool against large-scale Russian drone attacks.
