Ukrainian forces attacked with drones a military base in Crimea used for the storage and maintenance of Russian “Orion” drones, announced Robert “Madiar” Brovdi, commander of the Unmanned Systems Forces of Ukraine, Kyiv Independent reports.
The attack was carried out on the night of Thursday to Friday and targeted the drone base located at the Kirovske airfield. Brovdi did not provide details on the extent of the damage or whether any Orion drones were destroyed in the attack.
A massive unmanned aerial vehicle, the Orion is primarily used for surveillance and can carry up to 250 kilograms of explosives. The design is similar to the US Reaper drone, and production costs are estimated at over $5 million.
“This beast carries bombs and air-to-surface missiles, can stay in the air for up to 24 hours at altitudes of up to 7,500m”Brovdi wrote after the attacks, adding that the drone is considered “expensive and rare.”
The Orion model, which entered service with the Russian military in 2020, is a medium-altitude, long-range drone developed by the Russian company Kronstadt, which uses Israeli technology.
Analyst, deputy director of a Ukrainian electronic warfare (EW) company, Anatoli Hrapcinski, warned last year that Orion contains mostly imported components, obtained by Russia from third countries such as Kazakhstan.
“There is very little Russian technology there,” he said. “Even the engine is Austrian. It's heavy and expensive.”
Kirovske airfield has been a regular target of Ukrainian attacks, given its location and the fact that it is used to launch attacks against Ukrainian cities.
