By end of October, Ukraine will be able to produce about 400 drones-interceptors of "Shahed" jet-powered drones, - Zelenskyy
Drone Industry
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that Ukraine is testing five models of interceptors designed to counter jet-powered drones.
He made these remarks to the Financial Times, according to Censor.NET.
Details
He said that Ukraine is destroying about 57% of jet-powered drones and 85–90% of conventional drones.
The publication notes that Ukraine is rushing to develop a high-speed interceptor drone capable of shooting down Russian jet-powered drones.
"Zelenskyy said there are five interceptors currently being tested. By the end of October, he said, Ukraine will be able to produce around 400 of one of those models. The four others remain in the testing stage," the article states.
Challenges
The president also noted that there are obstacles in the development of countermeasures against Russian drones, including a shortage of engines for interceptors.
"Engines [are] the key, we really import a lot of engines. There are some engines of our production, but not enough," he said.
According to him, Ukraine also faces a budget shortfall, which hinders the development and mass production of critical defense equipment.
Zelenskyy stated that American F-16 fighter jets have proven effective against the new Russian jet-powered drones, but about half of these aircraft have been in Europe for an extended period for repairs and maintenance.
He added that some aircraft are returning so slowly that Ukraine is losing precious time when the fighter jets are particularly needed to defend the skies.
The head of state says that Kyiv wants assistance from its Western partners to move most of the maintenance operations to Ukraine. In his view, keeping the aircraft closer to the front lines would allow them to be returned to service more quickly.
When asked whether Ukraine’s partners are doing everything possible to help Kyiv, Zelenskyy replied: "Not enough, of course not enough."
