One of the highlights of the conflict in Ukraine continues to be the prevalence of FPV drones despite countermeasures taken by both sides. In the Russian case, tanks and combat vehicles continue to receive improvised armor and electronic countermeasures, solutions that have so far proven insufficient to deal with the swarms of Ukrainian drones.
For some weeks now, Russian ground forces have been testing various improvised armor solutions for their armored vehicles, to the point of considerably limiting the capabilities of their combat vehicles. Images and sequences captured on the battlefields revealed some tanks converted into true steel turtles, armored that would enjoy better protection against drone attack but that are very limited, since the configurations adopted considerably deny the movement of the tower and outside vision, reducing the crew’s situational awareness to almost zero.
Russian armored vehicles are also in the process of incorporating numerous passive solutions to minimize the effectiveness of Ukrainian FPV drones. This has resulted in various models of jammers and electronic countermeasures, systems that are increasingly common to see on Russian combat vehicles.
Despite the innovations adopted, most on the ground, both the Russian and Ukrainian armored forces have not managed to resolve the threat posed by agile FPV drones, which have become one of the main offensive and defensive tools on all fronts. of combat. The Ukrainian Army even had to adopt drastic measures, as it was forced to withdraw its M1A1 Abrams tanks from the front. This decision was due to the vulnerability of the tanks to drone attack, added to the complex situation that the defending forces are facing due to the lack of ammunition, personnel and sufficient support means.
Faced with serious material limitations, the Ukrainian ground forces have suffered a considerable degradation in their capabilities to operate as a homogeneous combined arms element, limiting themselves to offering static resistance as the various lines of defense give way.
In the Russian case, the invading forces maintain their advances despite the considerable losses of material. However, the constant adoption of countermeasures reflects the need to provide better protection to personnel and armored assets with the aim of reducing losses. Despite the fact that the Russian industrial complex has adapted to the rhythms of an ongoing conflict, and the feeling that Russian forces can absorb the aforementioned casualties, the stocks of combat vehicles are not unlimited, while the replacement of losses It has an increasingly higher cost.
Suffering considerable losses in their offensives, the Russian forces prevail thanks to the inexorable weight of their human and material resources. Despite this, the ever-present threat of attack drones continues to be an aspect without a solution, a situation that is taken into account by all actors who closely follow the development of the Ukrainian conflict.
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