Russia's "missile drones" may become a new threat to the Ukrainian Air Force

According to a report by Germany's "Daily Mirror" website on January 7, the Russia-Ukraine conflict has driven technological innovation: some drones are equipped with shotguns, some are launched by motherships, and they drag long optical fibers to resist electronic interference. Currently, some suicide drones are apparently also carrying interceptor missiles in addition to warheads. 

The Ukrainian drone unit reported that in early January, it intercepted for the first time a Russian drone equipped with a man-portable air defense missile system. This drone is equipped with a wireless modem and a camera, and both the airframe and the missile can be remotely controlled by the operator. 

The drone is described by Ukraine as a "threat to Ukraine's aviation sector" and "the enemy's new weapon". Since there is not much information about this new type of "missile drone", Ukraine will now conduct research on it. 

The key question is: why would such mass-produced, cheap suicide drones carry an air defense missile? The U.S. Institute for the Study of War cited the view of a Ukrainian electronic warfare expert. He believes that this new type of "missile drone" may first pose a threat to the Ukrainian Air Force. 

The Institute for the Study of War stated that the missile carried by this drone has a range of about 6 kilometers. This is not very far, but it may be sufficient to hit helicopters or fighter jets "belonging to Ukraine's air defense network". Ukraine's conventional defense scenarios may thus become more complex in the future. 

If Russia dispatches swarms of drones to attack Ukrainian targets, the Ukrainian Air Force units that take off to counter them may themselves come under missile attack. 

At least this is a possibility in theory. Practice will show how many new "missile drones" Russia will send to the battlefield and how effective they will be. 

However, the Institute for the Study of War also identified a weakness of this new type of drone: the missile is launched forward, which makes this Russian drone unable to threaten interceptor drones approaching from behind.