Unlocking aerial vision: recon officer details how small FPV drones can yield big wins in modern hostilities

On why he does not sign a contract with the Armed Forces

This is a principled position. As soon as you join the Armed Forces, you are automatically assigned to a sector – this is the first thing. Secondly, you come under the command of officers who do not always make rational decisions. Unfortunately, that is true. And thirdly, you lose a degree of autonomy. Now, if I feel fatigued and need a break, I have the flexibility to step back and recharge.

In this year and a half, I haven't felt any [PTSD symptoms]. I haven't dreamed about the war in a year and a half. Only now do I have some such flashbacks. But it's nothing, it's just related to the psyche.

This freedom is very costly. You can deprive a person of everything, but you can't deprive them of their freedom. If you have a strong personal position and your own views, and you're not ready to say goodbye to them, then the army is definitely not for you.

On drone production

As soon as we came across FPV drones, we realized we had to buy them. We met with Ukrainian businesses, which sold them for $650-700. $550 was the cheapest I could find. The quality is not particularly great – it's not made of the best components. The same Chinese ones.

Then we assembled our own drone and realized that if we made it from mud and straw, it would cost about $350. And selling it for $650 is already looting in our time, in my opinion. We assembled it from slightly better components – if you buy components in Ukraine, it costs around $500, if you buy components from China, it costs $410-415. And we realized that we had to make them ourselves.

We found someone who was ready to invest. He said: "I'm tired of donating to funds. Let's go, guys, you will make them, and we will deliver them to the front quickly. You do it for yourself, 5-10-15 – as many as you need. And we distribute the rest to the guys. If there is video evidence of the work, we help them further." So there are 6-7-8 crews who are now receiving FPV drones on a regular basis.

So far, this is funded by one person. But if everything works out, it will be more than one person, because it takes hundreds of thousands of dollars. We've made 60 [drones] so far. We're in the process of purchasing 40, and there are already people who will pick them up. Free of charge and without an acceptance certificate. I will actually either send them by Nova Poshta courier service or bring them in person and hand them over. And we will bomb the [enemy].

If I manage to get more people to donate to our war effort, I plan to start producing 500-1,000 units per month. Simple as.

On his motivation

When you get into this "hustle" and look at those guys in the trenches, you realize that the average age of an assault rifleman is 23-25 years old. He has never seen anything in his life. He should be living, starting a family, dreaming, traveling, realizing some ideas. These are talented people, absolutely all-rounders. I have this fierce desire for them all to return home as soon as possible. We want to do this.

Previously, it was a kind of struggle for territory. Later, it was sort of like “f*ck that territory”, because the number of people dying for this territory is just way f*cking over the top.

On his injury

It was a tank wound, shrapnel from a tank. It was an assault in the area of Robotyne, Zaporizhzhya axis. It was the capture of the most important height – the road between Robotyne and Verbove. It was a dominant height that controlled the approach of our reserves and equipment, as well as the advancing forces, the assault forces. It was a very important position, so it was crucial to take it.

Dmytro Rybachuk (“Reporter”), a very brave guy, was killed there. Many people were injured there, unfortunately. But they were not life-threatening. It was on the way there that I was wounded.

Assault groups started to come in. Everything was going great, we controlled them with this drone with a thermal imager. Then it was the transition from dusk to daylight. I changed the drone and flew a regular Mavic UAV. The guys were storming, I was controlling them, the drone could see everything, and we were transmitting messages via radio.

Our position, which was also at a good height, was being pounded by Grad multiple rocket launchers and mortars. Then they started firing with a tank. There was no radio range in the trench to control it with a drone, so I had to get out of the trench. So I got out. I came out before the landing, like a fool, standing there, flying. Everything was "clear".

I come back to change the battery – and there’s a strike. One second later, I'm sitting on my ass, the remote control is on fire, the antenna is on fire, and my phone is on fire in my pocket. I turn my head and see this red, red blood flowing. I think: “f*ck, probably an artery”. I took cover behind the plantation, swiftly applied a tourniquet to myself, immediately called for a medevac, and began making my way towards the designated evacuation point.

I arrived at the hospital at about 8:30 a.m. and waited until 12:30 p.m. to be admitted for surgery. I waited for four hours, a little blood leaked out, but the artery was intact. They sewed it up with difficulty, of course, through blood, sweat, and tears.

There were two bone-level fragments, one above and one below. Either it's a psychosomatic response, or I have a perception that they are causing some discomfort by shifting. Other than that, the healing process has been satisfactory; it healed like a champ. The doctors initially estimated it would take two months to heal, but I returned to the frontlines after just three weeks.

On learning to fly drones

You install a free simulator on your computer, connect the remote control to it, and practice on the simulator. The remote control, not the joystick, the usual X-12 should be connected. You practice, and then move on to flying outside, preferably in an open field. Then you fly around abandoned buildings, gain skills, and then you're off to the battlefield. I learned a little bit of engineering, how to attach the bomb, how to make it detonate, and then we were off.

First of all, no school will give you the opportunity to work with explosives. It's unrealistic, it's unofficial. No one will ever do this. It's an article, it's a crime. Secondly, no school will create maximum combat conditions. It's one thing to fly in silence, in peace, and another thing to be under fire. No school can provide this.

Someone offered me several times: open your own school, teach people. How can I teach them in civilian life? I can give them the basics, the theory, a little practice somewhere in the fields, but the basic skills you learn in combat – no, I can't. It's not like playing Counter-Strike on a computer, it's completely different. There, they shoot at you in real life.

On freedom and fatigue

Each of us must remember that there is a war in our country, but we should not oppress ourselves because we are fighting or not fighting. And we, the people who have gone through a part of the war and continue to go through it, should not look at people as if they were trash either. It should not be like that.

On February 24 [2022], people decided for themselves whether to volunteer or not. No one pulled anyone by the hand. The fact that this sh*t is happening now, and military commissariats are making plans or something, well, it's not good. It's not really good when people are being grabbed by the hand. How are we better than Russia or the “DPR” and “LPR”?

I'm glad that they have started to fight against military registration and enlistment offices, against all sorts of payoffs, against the military medical commissions. I am very pleased with this. A large number of people are at war, at the frontline, all the time. They have to be replaced somehow.

Imagine, I heard from the members of assault units, as they were going to storm and they said: "I'm hoping that I won't return from this assault. I'm already so fed up with being in an assault unit." It shouldn't be like that. And these are young guys – 25, 23 years old. Not even 30.

I decided that the format of warfare, like what I do, suits me. The format where I am restricted in my freedom is not suitable for me. If I have to choose between officially joining something or going to prison, I'd rather go to prison, get some books and read. But certainly not to be subordinate to anyone.

I do not encourage anyone and do not say: do this or that. Everyone makes decisions for themselves. I am not rooting for any format. The only thing I think about is drones. We need a large number of drones. Then we will beat everyone.

On the efficient use of money

I do not organize any fundraisers for myself and will not organize any. I cannot somehow cross this barrier. The guys explained it to me and said: "Look, the way we help you is that we are not at the front, but we can help. You don't have to think about it or worry that someone is poor. Everyone gave as much as they could, as much as they felt comfortable with." 

There are people who are raising 300 million for drones. Come on, you can equip the whole line with this money. To the teeth Drones will be flying 24/7. But again, I don't see any results from these drones, because some of them left, some didn't arrive, some were put on the balance sheet, some were left in warehouses, some appeared on classifieds platforms, and that's how it goes.

How to help? You take one specific unit and say: "Guys, what do you need? Do you need drones?" You go and bring them three drones, hand them over and say: "This is what I personally give you." In such small groups.

The attitude towards drones changes exactly when you start pouring your money into these drones. Before that, they were delivered to you in bundles, and you went through them in bundles. As soon as you put at least 60-70% of your money into them, the value changes instantly.