Single source — Display is not verification. The value lies in what the party itself publishes or claims: doctrine, self-image, announcements.
«Старлинки Илона Маска на дронах типа "Баба Яга" ВСУ» (Dva Mayora: 'Elon Musk's Starlinks on Ukrainian "Baba Yaga"-type drones')
2026-10-25SINGLE SOURCEMILBLOGGER
In a series of posts on 25 October, the Telegram channel Dva Mayora responded to Elon Musk's statement that Ukraine's military had used Starlink for offensive drone strikes and that this "loophole" was closed last week. The channel agrees with Musk that the Ukrainian front would collapse if Starlink were switched off, but calls his claim of ignorance a lie, and posted photos and videos it says show Starlink terminals recovered from Ukrainian drones: heavy "Baba Yaga"-type multicopters (which it says Ukraine used to terrorise Oleshky in Kherson region, its civilians and aid convoys), a RAM-2X drone with what it says is a 180 km range (adding that the next-generation RAM-3X is now often seen on the Crimean coast), a cheap tactical FPV drone, and mid-range drones it links to strikes on the R-280 "Novorossiya" highway, where it says a civilian bus was hit that day. It also posted interceptor-drone footage it says shows Starlink-equipped Ukrainian drones attacking clearly civilian lorries, and urged readers to send Musk such evidence on X.
The channel also reposted an analysis by the Telegram channel Russkiy Inzhener (S. Shilov). It claims Ukraine only ever had civilian Starlink tariffs and bypassed Musk's limits by soldering a GPS board into civilian terminals that spoofed their position, so a terminal reported being stationary inside a permitted zone while actually flying on a fast drone up to 150+ km away. According to the post, SpaceX long knew and only now found a server-side fix: sessions are dropped when a terminal that is stationary by GPS switches between satellites too quickly. The author argues Musk is defending market and control rather than morality — civilian service for civilians, military use only via expensive Starshield — and links the timing to who pays (the US earlier, now Europeans) and a temporary rift between Zelensky and Trump. None of this technical account is confirmed by SpaceX or other sources, and Ukrainian officials say moving terminals have had to be whitelisted on Starshield since February.
This is a single source: Dva Mayora, a pro-war Russian milblogger channel on Telegram. It reflects a personal/editorial voice, not a position of the Russian Ministry of Defence; milbloggers can contradict each other and the MoD, and the claims have not been independently verified.
«Володимир Зеленський закликав партнерів розблокувати постачання ракет до Patriot і продовжити підтримку України» (ArmyInform: 'Volodymyr Zelensky called on partners to unblock Patriot missile deliveries and continue supporting Ukraine')
2026-10-25SINGLE SOURCE
ArmyInform reports that on Sunday 25 October President Zelensky called on partners to unblock deliveries of Patriot interceptors that Europeans have already agreed to supply. He also asked them to keep supporting Ukraine's combat aviation, which he said is needed against jet-powered Shahed drones. Defence packages like these save lives, especially ahead of winter, he said, and support for Ukrainian forces should not drop while negotiations continue.
According to Zelensky, Russia used about 1,600 guided aerial bombs, 48 missiles of various types (including ballistic missiles) and almost 2,300 strike drones against Ukraine over the past week. ArmyInform lists the consequences of individual strikes. In Dnipropetrovsk oblast four people were killed and 22 injured, among them an 11-year-old girl. In Vinnytsia a drone hit an apartment block and injured six people. In Kharkiv a building-materials hypermarket was struck, followed by a second strike on the emergency crews, which injured rescuers. In the latest night attack, Russia targeted thermal power plants, substations, coal mines, grain stores, shopping centres and a postal terminal, with damage in nine oblasts.
This is a single source: ArmyInform, the news agency of the Ukrainian Ministry of Defence, relaying the Ukrainian president's figures; the claims have not been independently verified.
Russian unit fired ~100 Lancets in three months for only three hits, pro-Russian figure Gubarev claims
2026-10-25
A Russian drone team fired about 100 Lancet loitering munitions over roughly three months from mid-June and hit only three targets, according to pro-Russian militant Pavel Gubarev, the self-declared 2014 'people's governor' of Donetsk who now comments on the war on social media. Defence Blog reports his account via the Ukrainian outlet Militarnyi. Gubarev said the drones were launched by a team from the 'Sparta' unit under Senior Lt. Kirill Ozerov (call sign 'Nevsky'), without naming the sector of the front. The three hits were a self-propelled artillery gun, an infantry dugout and a roadside shop. Most of the other drones were neutralised by Ukrainian air defences, and some were destroyed by Russian forces themselves because units coordinated poorly.
Gubarev put the price of one Lancet at 3 to 5.5 million roubles ($37,000–67,000), so the three hits cost roughly 300–500 million roubles (about $3.7–6.1 million). The open-source project Oryx estimates a Lancet at around $35,000, which roughly matches. Gubarev blamed the commanders rather than the operators: in his account they used the expensive drones without proper preparation and sent reports of supposed successes up the chain of command. 'The questions are for the commanders,' he said. The claim comes from one partisan pro-Russian voice and has not been independently confirmed.
Defence Blog adds background. The Lancet family is built by ZALA Aero, part of the Kalashnikov Group. It has X-shaped double wings, an optical seeker in the nose, an electric pusher motor, a catapult launch and a briefcase-style control station. Its stated range is over 40 km, and the distances to targets it has struck suggest a maximum of about 50 km. Some versions carry a KZ-6 shaped-charge warhead of about 3 kg, reportedly held in the fuselage with mounting foam. For much of the war the Lancet was one of Russia's most effective weapons against Ukrainian artillery and armour. Ukraine now shoots down growing numbers of them, including with interceptor drones that hunt them in the air.
«Киев атаковал Пермский край, удары дронов становятся всё более дальнобойными» (Topwar: 'Kyiv attacked Perm Krai; drone strikes reach ever further')
2026-10-25SINGLE SOURCE
Topwar reports a Ukrainian drone attack on an industrial facility in the north of Perm Krai, more than 1,500 km from the Ukrainian border. Quoting regional governor Dmitry Makhonin, it says air defence and mobile fire groups shot down 11 strike drones. According to the governor, the facility suffered minor damage and kept operating normally, but five workers were hurt and three were taken for medical checks.
The article says Ukrainian sources identify the target as the AVISMA titanium and magnesium works in Berezniki, one of Russia's largest producers of titanium sponge and magnesium, but adds that there is no evidence of serious damage. The author says Kyiv is putting more and more weight on very long-range strikes, and claims, without evidence, that such operations need coordination with Western, especially US, intelligence and satellite support.
This is a single source: Topwar (Voennoye Obozreniye), a Russian pro-government military news site, not an official MoD outlet; the casualty and damage figures come from the Russian regional governor, and the claims have not been independently verified.
«Скеля» проти «Рубікону» та «Судного дня»: історія помсти за «Діксона» (ArmyInform: ''Skelia' versus 'Rubicon' and 'Judgement Day': the story of revenge for 'Dikson'')
2026-10-25SINGLE SOURCE
ArmyInform republishes a soldier's profile first posted by Ukraine's 223rd Anti-Aircraft Missile Regiment. The soldier, callsign 'Skelia', is now a heavy bomber-drone operator on the Sumy axis. The article is mostly a personal story, but it includes one operational detail about Russian drone units. On 6 January 2026, while Ukrainian troops were moving groups into positions on the Sumy axis, they were hunted by the Russian drone unit 'Rubicon'. A separate Russian unit called 'Sudnyi Den' ('Judgement Day') carried out strikes with fibre-optic-guided drones. A Ukrainian soldier, callsign 'Dikson', was killed by a drone strike that day. Another soldier was wounded and could only be evacuated around 15:30, once the Russian attacks had temporarily eased.
The account fits a familiar pattern: Russian drone units watch the routes Ukrainian infantry use for rotations and resupply and strike them there. Fibre-optic drones cannot be jammed by radio-frequency EW. The soldier also says Russian intercepted communications confirmed hits from his own later bomber-drone strikes. The article gives no further detail about the strength, equipment or command structure of either Russian unit.
This is a single source: ArmyInform, the news agency of the Ukrainian Ministry of Defence; the claims have not been independently verified.
Lithuania unveils X-12 jet-powered interceptor drone aimed at Russia's Geran-5, reportedly combat-tested in Ukraine
2026-10-25
Lithuania has presented the X-12, a turbojet-powered interceptor drone built to destroy fast aerial targets, according to Ukrainian outlet Militarnyi, which cites the Lithuanian news site Delfi. The primary target named is Russia's jet-powered Geran-5 attack drone. The project is linked to the Strategic Defense Alliance (SDA), an association of Ukrainian, Lithuanian and Latvian defence-technology companies. No single manufacturer is named. Its engines were assembled in Lithuania, and some components come from Latvia and Ukraine. An SDA representative says the drone contains no Chinese-made parts.
The developers give a maximum speed of up to 700 km/h, a cruising speed of about 350 km/h, a range of up to 126 km, a maximum operating altitude of 10 km and an endurance of more than 12 minutes, depending on configuration and payload. Warhead, guidance and unit price were not disclosed. The stated goal is for the X-12 to cost less than the drones it hunts, such as a Shahed. According to Delfi, the X-12 has already been used in combat in Ukraine, and the Ukrainian personnel who tested it gave it a positive assessment. Lithuania itself lacks the conditions to test such systems. These performance and combat-test claims come from the developers and have not been independently confirmed.
The X-12 is expected to be supplied to the Ukrainian armed forces, and Lithuania is considering adding it to its own air defence. SDA's Richardas Savickas claimed the system currently has no equivalent. Tadas Ruzhele, who coordinates Lithuanian-Ukrainian defence-industry cooperation at Lithuania's Ministry of National Defence, called such interceptors a critical part of layered air defence and stressed the need for trained operators and for lessons from Ukraine's combat experience. Russia's shift to jet-powered Geran variants is pushing up the speed that interceptors need, and Ukraine is pursuing its own jet interceptors as well, including one based on the Bars missile-drone that is planned for joint production with Germany.
«Сили оборони перехопили за ніч 119 ворожих БПЛА, 64 з яких — реактивні» (ArmyInform: 'Defence Forces intercepted 119 enemy UAVs overnight, 64 of them jet-powered')
2026-10-25SINGLE SOURCE
On the night of 24–25 October Russia attacked Ukraine with 153 Shahed-type strike drones, 92 of them jet-powered, together with S8000 "Banderol/Dan-T", Gerbera and "Parodiya" decoy drones, ArmyInform reports, citing the Ukrainian Air Force. As of 08:00, air defence had shot down or suppressed 119 Shahed-type, Gerbera and other drones, 64 of them jet-powered. Nine drones were still airborne at that time. Hits were recorded at 15 locations and debris fell at 9 more. Aviation, anti-aircraft missile troops, EW and unmanned-systems units and mobile fire groups took part in the defence.
The notable point is the share of jet-powered drones (Geran-3/-4/-5 type): 92 of 153 launched (about 60%). In the two preceding nightly reports, 68 of 140 and 50 of 101 intercepted drones were jet-powered. Calculated from the Air Force figures (the tracker's own arithmetic, not ArmyInform's), about 70% of the jet drones (64 of 92) were brought down, against roughly 90% of the remaining types (55 of 61), which fits the picture of faster drones being harder to intercept for mobile fire groups and quadcopter interceptors. ArmyInform also mentions a mobile fire group soldier who downed a jet-powered Shahed-type drone with a MANPADS over Odesa oblast.
This is a single source: ArmyInform, the news agency of the Ukrainian Ministry of Defence, relaying Ukrainian Air Force figures; the claims have not been independently verified.
The pro-war Telegram channel Dva Mayora (Two Majors) relayed a Russian Ministry of Defence claim on the morning of 25 October that Russian air defences shot down 532 Ukrainian fixed-wing drones overnight. That is one of the larger single-night figures the ministry has given.
The interceptions are said to have taken place over a very wide area. The list includes the border regions of Belgorod, Bryansk and Kursk; the central regions of Voronezh, Tula, Oryol, Lipetsk, Kaluga and Ryazan, plus the Moscow region; the Volga and Urals regions of Saratov, Samara, Penza, Volgograd and Ulyanovsk, the republics of Tatarstan, Mari El and Udmurtia, and Perm Krai; and in the south Rostov, Krasnodar Krai, Adygea, Crimea and the Sea of Azov. The post repeats the figure without its own analysis and does not say what was hit or how much damage was done.
This is a single source: Dva Mayora, a personal and editorial pro-war Russian Telegram channel run by milbloggers, not an official Russian MoD outlet. Here it repeats a ministry claim, and Russian MoD shoot-down figures are routinely unverifiable. Milbloggers can contradict each other and the MoD, and the claims have not been independently verified.
«Литва поможет Украине сбивать российские реактивные «Герани-5»» (Topwar: 'Lithuania will help Ukraine shoot down Russian jet-powered Geran-5s')
2026-10-25SINGLE SOURCE
Topwar reports, citing Ukrainian media and a developer press release, that Lithuanian developers have presented the X-12, a jet-powered interceptor drone with a turbojet engine intended to destroy high-speed aerial targets such as Russia's jet-powered Geran-5. The stated figures are a maximum speed of about 700 km/h, a cruise speed of about 350 km/h, a range of no more than 126 km, a maximum interception altitude of 10 km and a flight time of no more than 12 minutes. The "Lithuania" in the headline refers to Lithuanian developers; the article does not describe a Lithuanian government aid package.
According to a company representative quoted in the piece, the X-12 is cheaper than the Geran, contains no Chinese components (all parts are made in Lithuania and Ukraine) and has "no analogues in the world". The drone has reportedly already been tested in combat in Ukraine with positive results, and serial production and deliveries to Ukraine are planned. It has also been offered to the Lithuanian Ministry of Defence, which is still considering it. Topwar notes that Lithuania's defence budget is much smaller than Ukraine's, and reader comments are largely sceptical about the drone's range, endurance and guidance.
This is a single source: Topwar, a Russian pro-war military website; the claims have not been independently verified.
Ukraine's General Staff says it struck Russian radar stations in Belgorod Oblast and command posts in Zaporizhzhia and Kherson oblasts
2026-10-25
The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine said in a Facebook statement that Ukrainian forces hit Russian radar stations near Gostishchevo and Kurgannoye (Kurganne) in Russia's Belgorod Oblast on 24 October and during the night of 25 October. The statement did not name the radar types or say how much damage was done. According to the General Staff, "striking the radar stations creates gaps in the enemy's radar coverage", which Ukrainian reporting links to wider use of Ukrainian drones across the border.
The same report lists a command post of a Russian unit near Tarasivka in Zaporizhzhia Oblast and a command-and-observation post near Hola Prystan in occupied Kherson Oblast. The General Staff says these strikes disrupt Russian command and control. It also lists strikes on Russian troop concentrations near Mykolaivka and Novoukrainka in Donetsk Oblast, and near Berdiansk, Okhrimivka and Tarasivka in Zaporizhzhia Oblast.
All of these claims come from the Ukrainian General Staff, a party to the conflict. They have not been independently confirmed, and the report gives no evidence of the effect on the targets. It fits a recurring pattern of Ukrainian strikes on Russian radar and command nodes near the border and in the occupied south.
Massive Ukrainian drone attack on Belgorod hits MegaGRINN shopping centre; one killed, 10–14 injured per regional HQ
2026-10-24
A large swarm of Ukrainian drones attacked the city of Belgorod overnight into 25 October 2026, the Kyiv Independent reports, citing local officials and social media footage. Locals reported via the Astrapress Telegram channel and eyewitness videos showed explosions, fires and air defence activity over the city. According to the Ukrainian monitoring channel Exilenova Plus, most drones were aimed at the city centre and the target was MegaGRINN, Belgorod's largest shopping and entertainment complex (over 163,000 m², more than 200 shops), which was closed and empty at the time. Residents also reported a fire in the courtyard of a residential complex. The Belgorod Oblast operational headquarters confirmed a "massive UAV attack" but did not name specific targets; the identification of MegaGRINN as the target comes from locals and monitoring channels, not from officials.
The casualty figures come from the regional headquarters and shifted during the night: TASS first reported one civilian killed and ten injured, including an ambulance worker (eight hospitalised, two outpatients); in a later update the Kyiv Independent cited authorities as saying one civilian was killed and 14 injured, with at least 30 apartment buildings, 35 vehicles, four houses, three administrative buildings and eight commercial properties damaged. Separately, on 24 October the headquarters reported a man killed by an FPV drone in Zamostye (Graivoron district), a woman injured by debris of a downed drone in Blizhnyaya Igumenka and a man injured when a drone hit a car in Shebekino.
Belgorod lies about 34 km from the Ukrainian border and is regularly hit; earlier strikes targeted energy infrastructure and warehouses, including Ozon facilities. The casualty and damage figures are claims by the Russian regional headquarters, relayed in part by the state agency TASS, and could not be verified by the Kyiv Independent; Ukraine's military did not comment.
«Логистика и энергетика: новые удары по целям в Харькове и на Западной Украине» (Topwar: 'Logistics and energy: new strikes on targets in Kharkiv and Western Ukraine')
2026-10-24SINGLE SOURCE
Topwar (Voennoye Obozreniye) author Maxim Svetlyshev claims that Russian forces carried out an evening wave of strikes on 24 October across almost all Kyiv-controlled territory. The weapons named are Geran attack drones, 'Dan-T' drones and FAB bombs fitted with UMPK glide-and-correction kits. He says logistics and energy facilities were destroyed 'from Kharkiv to Western Ukraine', but gives no numbers of drones or munitions.
Citing unnamed Ukrainian sources, the article reports a strike on another shopping centre in Kharkiv, which it claims Ukraine routinely uses for logistics. It also reports a water outage in Kovel (Volyn oblast) after a power cut, and explosions in Rivne oblast, on the outskirts of Kyiv, in Korosten (Zhytomyr oblast), Synelnykove (Dnipropetrovsk oblast), Vapniarka (Vinnytsia oblast) and Kyiv-held Zaporizhzhia. Large fires were reported at the Burshtyn thermal power plant (Ivano-Frankivsk oblast). The article quotes Oleksandr Kharchenko, director of the Ukrainian Energy Research Center: repair equipment (transformers, grid components) is delayed because Western money went into a European energy support fund while equipment contracts have not yet been signed. The author concludes that repairs and outages will last longer.
This is a single source: Topwar, a Russian pro-war military website; the claims have not been independently verified.
«Демонтаж логистики: кратно возросло число ударов ФАБами по целям в Запорожье» (Topwar: 'Dismantling logistics: the number of FAB strikes on targets in Zaporizhzhia has multiplied')
2026-10-24SINGLE SOURCE
Topwar author Alexey Volodin claims that Russian aviation has sharply increased ('many times over') its strikes on Kyiv-held Zaporizhzhia city with FAB high-explosive bombs fitted with UMPK glide-and-correction kits. He gives no figures. According to the article, the glide-bomb strikes alternate with drone attacks, including jet-powered Gerans and 'Dan-T' drones. He says this combination stretches Ukrainian air defence and makes movement in the city harder.
The article presents the Dnipro crossings between the city's right and left banks as the main target. After a series of strikes on the bridges, including the cable-stayed bridge (the 'Vantovy' bridge), traffic was reportedly restricted on some sections, and Ukrainian authorities reported damage to transport and the need for better protection; the article names no specific Ukrainian source. Citing unnamed 'intelligence data', the author claims that most night-time traffic over the crossings consists of Ukrainian troops and military cargo. He argues that cutting the bridges would hamper supply, troop rotation and the movement of reserves, including towards Orikhiv. He links the air campaign to Russian ground pressure on the city's approaches: from the south near Stepnohirsk (citing 'Russian sources') and from the east, west of the Ternuvate heights near the Dnipropetrovsk oblast border. The article gives no casualty figures, bomb counts or damage assessments, and itself says the real effect depends on the damage done and how the front develops.
This is a single source: Topwar, a Russian pro-war military website; the claims have not been independently verified.
«Глаза в зенит: Кто закрывает небо ДНР» (WarGonzo: 'Eyes to the zenith: who closes the sky over the DPR')
2026-10-24SINGLE SOURCEMILBLOGGER
WarGonzo is promoting a special video report by its correspondent Vladislav Zizdok, filmed for Russian state broadcaster Channel One, about a drone-hunting unit in the BARS DPR (Combat Army Reserve volunteer formation) in Donetsk. According to the post, the unit mixes 'first-wave' militia veterans from 2014 with very young recruits who have just signed their first contract. Their task is to detect, track and destroy incoming Ukrainian drones.
The crew spent a day with the team on a training range, where every interception is drilled until it becomes automatic, and then joined a night shift at an air observation post. That post guards what WarGonzo calls a key strategic electrical substation. The post stresses that the soldiers rely heavily on sight and hearing: the critical moment is recognising when a distant buzz turns into the whistle of a diving drone. It presents the stakes as both the crew's lives and the Donbas power grid.
The post itself gives no figures, equipment details or claimed interceptions. It is essentially a trailer for the full report on RUTUBE, VK, Dzen and MAX, but it shows that point defence of energy infrastructure against long-range Ukrainian drones relies on volunteer reserve units with observation posts. This is a single source: WarGonzo, a pro-war Russian milblogger channel on Telegram (here working with state broadcaster Channel One) that gives a personal and editorial view, not a Russian MoD position. Milbloggers can contradict each other and the MoD, and the claims have not been independently verified.
Russia's 24–25 October strike pattern: 153 drones, 92 jet-powered Shaheds, Banderol cruise missiles and drone strikes on cities and a Kherson bus
2026-10-24
On the night of 24–25 October Russia launched 153 long-range strike assets at Ukraine, according to the Ukrainian Air Force as reported by Ukrainska Pravda and the Kyiv Independent. The mix included Shahed-type attack drones, Gerbera and decoy drones, and S8000 Banderol low-cost cruise missiles, which Ukrainska Pravda describes as both drone- and air-launched. Of the Shaheds, 92 were jet-powered. By 08:00 Ukrainian air defence had shot down or jammed 119 targets, including 64 of the jet-powered Shaheds; nine drones were still in Ukrainian airspace. Hits were recorded at 15 locations and falling debris at nine more. By simple arithmetic on these figures, roughly 70% of the jet-powered drones were stopped against about 90% of the remaining types, suggesting the faster jet variants are harder to intercept. These are Ukrainian military figures and have not been independently verified.
The strikes hit residential areas in several cities. In Vinnytsia a drone hit a five-storey apartment building, destroying four flats and injuring six people; the regional administration said the wider attack on the oblast also damaged critical and civilian infrastructure and an elderly care home. In Kharkiv's Novobavarskyi district Mayor Ihor Terekhov said a jet-powered drone killed one person and injured four on the evening of 24 October. In Synelnykove (Dnipropetrovsk Oblast) a drone strike on 24 October set a multi-storey building on fire, killing three people and injuring at least 12, including an 11-year-old girl; the oblast administration reported more than 60 drone and artillery attacks on six districts that day.
At short range, Russian forces struck a passenger bus in Kherson's Tsentralnyi district with a drone at about 15:11 on 25 October, with passengers on board; six people suffered blast injuries and a 67-year-old man later died, according to the city military administration. The source does not specify the drone type. Across Ukraine, local authorities reported 8 people killed and 51 injured over the day, per the Kyiv Independent; Zaporizhzhia Oblast alone reported 832 strikes on 52 settlements using drones, artillery, aircraft and MLRS. Casualty and strike figures come from Ukrainian regional authorities and have not been independently confirmed.
«Штучний інтелект не врятував»: біля Запоріжжя збили два російські «Альбатроси-М5» (ArmyInform: ''Artificial intelligence did not save them': two Russian Albatros-M5 drones shot down near Zaporizhzhia')
2026-10-24SINGLE SOURCE
Drone pilots of the 23rd Public Order Protection Brigade "Khortytsia" of Ukraine's National Guard intercepted two Russian Albatros-M5 reconnaissance UAVs that were flying towards the city of Zaporizhzhia, ArmyInform reports, citing a combat video released by the brigade. Both drones were detected and destroyed while still on their approach to the city; the article's tags indicate interceptor drones were used.
According to the brigade, the Albatros-M5 is a reconnaissance drone fitted with a neural network that analyses imagery during flight and can identify concentrations of people in the reconnaissance area. It also carries day and night cameras and has an endurance of up to 4.5 hours. The headline's point is that this onboard AI did not protect the drones from interception.
This is a single source: ArmyInform, the news agency of the Ukrainian Ministry of Defence, relaying claims of a National Guard brigade; the claims have not been independently verified.
«Блэкаут в Крыму через удар по Краснодарскому краю» (Rybar: 'Blackout in Crimea via a strike on Krasnodar Krai')
2026-10-24SINGLE SOURCEMILBLOGGER
The pro-war Telegram channel Rybar writes that residents of Crimea and Sevastopol were reminded of the summer of 2026, when the peninsula suffered a total blackout. It says Ukrainian forces briefly got what they wanted by attacking the 'energy bridge' at Taman in Krasnodar Krai. Rybar agrees with the channel Dva Mayora that there are many questions about how critical facilities are defended. In its view, regions are not being equipped with mobile fire groups and other counter-drone means fast enough.
At the same time, Rybar presents Crimea's adaptation as a success. It says Ukraine has struck substations and thermal power plants, attacked energy hubs and tried to cut the land route, without significant results beyond short-term problems. According to the post, commercial businesses have been buying generators en masse since the summer, small businesses have installed small power units, and mobile fire groups are becoming more experienced at repelling raids. Rybar argues that interceptor drones and machine guns do become effective when the equipment is regularly modernised and the crews gain experience, and that other regions should follow Crimea's example.
Rybar claims that, with no significant change on the front line, deep strikes are Ukraine's only way to create a 'nice media picture'. It warns that such strikes will recur regularly unless infrastructure protection becomes more comprehensive. This is a single source: Rybar, a personal/editorial pro-war Russian Telegram voice, not a position of the Russian Ministry of Defence; milbloggers can contradict each other and the MoD, and the claims have not been independently verified.
NYT: North Korea upgrades ballistic missiles and mass-produces attack drones with Russian help
2026-10-24
According to a New York Times report (23 October 2026), relayed by Ukrainska Pravda and SFG Media, North Korea is continuing to upgrade its ballistic missiles and has begun mass-producing attack drones, largely thanks to its military cooperation with Russia. Russia is said to share its own developments with Pyongyang in exchange for soldiers, workers and weapons. A key element is access to Russian data and feedback on how North Korean weapons perform in combat: Anton Ponomarenko of the Pacific Forum says this analysis of battlefield performance has helped improve warhead accuracy and missile manoeuvrability, making the threat to South Korea "more substantial". The reports do not name specific missile types such as the KN-23/KN-24 (Hwasong-11 family); this could not be checked in the original NYT article, which was not accessible.
On missiles, the report says Pyongyang is working on more powerful warheads, missiles that can penetrate modern missile defences, shorter launch preparation, harder-to-detect launchers (including tunnel-concealed mobile launchers), submarine-based systems and a shift to solid fuel; some missiles can carry either a conventional or a nuclear warhead. In early October North Korea tested a tactical ballistic missile it claims is nuclear-capable: South Korea and Japan estimated a range of about 700 km, Pyongyang claimed 1,000 km. Five days later South Korea test-fired its own hypersonic ballistic missile for the first time, observed by President Lee Jae-myung, which the NYT reads as growing unease in Seoul. On drones, Ukrainian officials claim Russia has recruited 12,000 North Korean workers to build Geran-2 drones at facilities in Tatarstan, and Russian officers have reportedly been sent to North Korea to train drone operators. Russia has also helped North Korea develop and mass-produce its own unmanned systems; Kim Jong Un visited a drone factory last month and photos suggest series production has started. In a September drill a drone swarm attacked a target island while cruise and ballistic missiles struck simultaneously from different directions — a tactic that, according to the NYT and Hong Min (KINU), could force South Korea and its allies into very costly air-defence upgrades.
Background: in a May 2026 Lowy Institute analysis, Ponomarenko noted that North Korean troops fought in the Kursk region and remain active in Kursk Oblast, that Russian Defence Minister Belousov decorated them for the Kursk operations and announced a 2027–31 cooperation plan, and estimated North Korea's earnings from arms deals with Russia at about US$14.4 billion, alongside technology transfers in drones, loitering munitions, ballistic and air-defence systems. The individual claims about Russian assistance rest largely on analysts and Ukrainian/South Korean officials and have not been independently verified.
«Ukrainian Brigade Shows YoYo Anti-Drone System Taking Down russian Mavic Quadcopter (Video)» (Defense Express)
2026-10-24SINGLE SOURCE
Defense Express reports that Ukraine's 3rd Brigade has released video it presents as the first combat footage of the YoYo anti-drone system. In the footage a Ukrainian drone fitted with YoYo intercepts a Russian Mavic-type quadcopter, which then falls. According to the brigade, this is the first time the system has been shown in real combat use.
The article describes YoYo as a compact module mounted under a multicopter. When the Ukrainian drone gets close to an enemy UAV, the module lets out a cord with a weight on the end, meant to wrap around the target's propellers. Once the cord is wrapped around them the propellers can no longer turn and the targeted drone loses control. The article gives no details on the manufacturer, range, cost or how many interceptions have been carried out.
This is a single source: Defense Express, a Ukrainian defence outlet, reporting a Ukrainian brigade's own footage and claims; the claims have not been independently verified.
«Як вам скисле молоко?»: Signum знищив замаскований російський паливозаправник (ArmyInform: ''How do you like sour milk?': Signum destroyed a disguised Russian fuel tanker')
2026-10-24SINGLE SOURCE
The Signum drone unit of Ukraine's 59th Separate Assault Brigade has released a video of a strike on a Russian fuel tanker. According to the unit, the tanker was disguised with the word 'MOLOKO' ('MILK') painted on its tank. Signum's comment was that 'the inscription on the tank does not change its contents, let alone its purpose.' The article does not give a date or location for the strike.
ArmyInform notes that Russian tankers marked 'VODA' ('WATER') had been seen at the front before. Activists of the Ukrainian resistance movement 'Zhovta Strichka' (Yellow Ribbon) had joked that 'MILK' would be next. This time, the article says, Ukrainian drone operators spotted exactly such a vehicle and struck it. Disguising fuel trucks as civilian or harmless vehicles points to how much pressure Ukrainian middle-strike drones put on Russian rear-area logistics. Signum said Russian logistics remain one of its operators' main targets.
This is a single source: ArmyInform, the news agency of the Ukrainian Ministry of Defence; the claims have not been independently verified.
«Для фронтової логістики й проти реактивних «Шахедів»: Володимир Зеленський — про відновлення Starlink і Starshield» (ArmyInform: 'For front-line logistics and against jet-powered Shaheds: Volodymyr Zelensky on the restoration of Starlink and Starshield')
2026-10-24SINGLE SOURCE
ArmyInform reports that, according to President Volodymyr Zelensky, Starlink and Starshield are again working at the speeds Ukraine's Defence Forces need for front-line logistics and for countering Russian jet-powered Shaheds. Zelensky said restoration began during the night of 23–24 October and that by the morning the military was recording speeds sufficient for its tasks: "The speed is now as we need it." He stressed that high-speed operation of both services matters especially for front-line logistics and for countering the jet Shaheds.
That morning Zelensky heard a report from Defence Minister Yevhen Khmara; after checks, the ministry confirmed both services were working. Zelensky thanked the American side and partners who helped resolve the problem, including members of Congress, the State Department and the US president. Earlier the same day, the ministry's monitoring systems had recorded stable Starlink/Starshield operation at speeds above 400 km/h, which Khmara called important for the military, drone operations, logistics and communications. The restrictions on Starshield were first recorded on 14 October and affected unmanned systems moving faster than 160 km/h, disrupting logistics and combat tasks.
This is a single source: ArmyInform, the news agency of Ukraine's Ministry of Defence; the claims have not been independently verified.
«Очі», які вміють бити: нацгвардійці 21-ї бригади опановують комплекс GARA (ArmyInform: ''Eyes' that can strike: National Guard soldiers of the 21st Brigade master the GARA system')
2026-10-24SINGLE SOURCE
Operators of the 21st Public Order Protection Brigade "Petro Kalnyshevskyi" of Ukraine's National Guard are learning to use GARA, which ArmyInform describes as a Ukrainian unmanned aircraft system for reconnaissance and strikes on targets. The National Guard published photos of the training. During the exercises the aerial reconnaissance operators check the system before launch, set up communications, launch the UAV and practise controlling it from cover; they also train separately in working with the information the drone gathers in flight.
According to the article, GARA is not limited to reconnaissance: it can find camouflaged positions, monitor the movement of vehicles and keep watch over a given area, and once operators identify a suitable target the UAV can also be used to strike it. The brigade is practising this full sequence, from preparing the system to finding and engaging the target. The article gives no technical specifications (range, endurance, warhead) for GARA.
This is a single source: ArmyInform, the news agency of the Ukrainian Ministry of Defence; the claims have not been independently verified.
Zelensky sanctions Russian missile makers and military-industry suppliers, including RUSAL group companies
2026-10-24
President Volodymyr Zelensky has enacted two decisions of Ukraine's National Security and Defence Council. They impose sanctions on Russian companies and individuals involved in producing ballistic and cruise missiles, drones, military aircraft and other weapons, Ukrainska Pravda reports, citing the President's Office.
The first list covers 51 individuals and 44 legal entities involved in producing and supplying components for the Iskander, Kalibr, Kh-101 and Kinzhal missiles. Named entities include the G.S. Petrov Institute of Plastics, the Kometa Corporation for Special-Purpose Space Systems, VitaReaktiv and Promenergo. The second package targets 32 Russian nationals and 35 Russian companies that supply high-precision industrial equipment, electronics, raw materials and components used to build missiles, drones, armoured vehicles and military aircraft.
Companies of the RUSAL aluminium group were also sanctioned; according to the President's Office, their products are used in Russian weapons production. The report names no non-Russian suppliers. The President's Office says it will work with international partners to synchronise the measures with their sanctions regimes.
Russia's campaign against Kyiv's 'power ring': the capital's own CHP generation is out and strikes on 330/750 kV substations raise the prospect of 8-20 hour daily blackouts this winter
2026-10-24
In an analysis for Ukrainska Pravda (24 October 2026, translated from Ekonomichna Pravda), energy journalist Mykola Topalov describes how Russia is systematically attacking Kyiv and Kyiv Oblast with two aims: to destroy the city's combined heat and power (CHP) plants and to break the so-called 'power ring'. That ring is the system of high-voltage lines and 330 kV substations linking the capital to the national grid from several directions, with the 750 kV Kyivska substation as a key node through which power from the Rivne and Khmelnytskyi nuclear plants reaches the city. Kyiv normally uses 1-1.2 GW (12-15% of national demand), rising to 1.8-2 GW in winter. Before the large-scale winter attacks of 2025, local generation from CHP-5, CHP-6 and Darnytsia CHP (CHP-4) supplied up to about 1.3 GW, according to an energy-company source. Those plants can no longer generate electricity, yet all three were hit again on the night of 13-14 October.
The article explains the tactical logic. Russia does not need to destroy the whole ring: damaging a few critical nodes that carry a large share of the flow is enough. Power may then exist in the system but cannot be delivered to Kyiv in sufficient volume, forcing dispatchers into emergency or scheduled cuts. The ring's key components have been under constant attack for more than a month. Repairs are slowed by repeat strikes, long air-raid alerts, risks to repair crews, and government plans to cut the share of energy workers exempt from mobilisation. Replacing a large transformer takes much longer if no spare is held in reserve. The article does not give numbers of missiles or drones per strike. It stresses that protection of these sites against ballistic missiles depends mainly on air defence, that the engineering protection built at most substations cannot guarantee equipment survives a direct hit, and that Patriot interceptors are in short supply.
The article sets out three winter scenarios. If repairs keep pace and new strikes cause no critical losses, outages would be about 8-10 hours a day. With continued attacks and lingering damage during moderate cold, they would be 12-16 hours. The worst case, regular large-scale strikes on key substations during severe frost, would mean up to 20 hours a day. Energy-sector sources nevertheless do not expect Russia to 'plunge Kyiv into darkness' entirely. Critical infrastructure (water pumps, heating, transport, hospitals, communications) needs about 200 MW. According to Ekonomichna Pravda's sources, 150 MW of distributed generation is already running, rising to 180-185 MW by the end of 2026, and private plants could add another 55-60 MW before winter, about half of which are ready. The scenarios are the outlet's assessment based on unnamed energy-sector sources.
«Противник вывел в море дроны-платформы с зенитными дронами для борьбы с нашими БПЛА» (Dva Mayora: 'The enemy has put sea-drone platforms carrying anti-aircraft drones out to sea to fight our UAVs')
2026-10-24SINGLE SOURCEMILBLOGGER
The pro-war Telegram channel Dva Mayora writes that Ukraine has taken unmanned sea-drone platforms carrying anti-aircraft (interceptor) drones out to sea to fight Russian UAVs. The post, which accompanies a video, is captioned as a strike by a Russian Geran (Shahed-type) drone on a "Sargan-3000" of the Ukrainian Navy. The channel gives no location, date or damage assessment and offers no further detail beyond the caption.
The post relates to a capability Ukraine itself publicised shortly before: according to Ukrainian reporting of 22 October, a Ukrainian Navy Sargan 3000 sea drone launched a Wild Hornets Sting interceptor drone that shot down a Shahed. The Dva Mayora post thus presents the Russian side's response: treating these sea-based interceptor carriers as targets for Geran strikes. Whether the strike shown actually hit or disabled a Sargan-3000 cannot be determined from the post.
This is a single source: Dva Mayora, a Russian pro-war military blogger channel on Telegram; it is a personal/editorial pro-war voice, not a position of the Russian Ministry of Defence, and milbloggers can contradict each other and the MoD. The claims have not been independently verified.
«Ночью Крым остался без света» (Dva Mayora: 'Crimea left without power overnight')
2026-10-24SINGLE SOURCEMILBLOGGER
Early on 24 October the pro-war Telegram channel Dva Mayora reported that Crimea had been left without power overnight. It noted that officials were speaking of an 'accident outside Crimea', but concluded that a massed Ukrainian drone raid on Krasnodar Krai had evidently damaged the infrastructure of the energy bridge to the peninsula. The channel said 616 Ukrainian drones had been shot down across Russia that night, with the attack concentrated on Krasnodar Krai. It quoted the regional operational HQ as saying that falling drone debris had set fire to a substation in the khutor of Bely in Temryuk district, and that power was being restored to three settlements. Dva Mayora added that 'the enemy claims' a hit on the 500/220 kV Taman substation, which caused the Crimean blackout, and that Russian crews were still repairing and redistributing power.
In a later post the channel relayed the Sevastopol governor's guidance. About 40% of the city's mobile base stations were working, backup power lasts about four hours on average before emergency crews recharge it with mobile generators, utility Sevastopolenergo would publish district-by-district restoration data, and from 9:00 water pressure was reduced in part of Leninsky district (Ostryakova, Khrustaleva, N. Muzyki), with water delivered by truck.
Unlike Rybar, Dva Mayora does not itself assert the Taman hit; it attributes that claim to the Ukrainian side, alongside the Russian authorities' drone-debris account. This is a single source: Dva Mayora, a personal/editorial pro-war Russian Telegram voice, not a position of the Russian Ministry of Defence; milbloggers can contradict each other and the MoD, and the claims (including the 616 drones shot down) have not been independently verified.
On the night of 23–24 October Russia launched 126 strike drones at Ukraine – Shahed-type, S8000 "Banderol/Dan-T", Gerbera and "Parodiya" decoy drones – ArmyInform reports, citing the Ukrainian Air Force. As of 08:00, air defence had shot down or suppressed 101 drones, including 50 jet-powered Shahed-type drones, plus S8000, Gerbera and other types. Hits were recorded at 14 locations and debris fell at 5. Aviation, anti-aircraft missile troops, EW and unmanned-systems units and mobile fire groups were involved.
The headline itself puts the jet-powered drones (Geran-3/-4/-5 type) first: they made up about half of everything intercepted that night. This continues the pattern of the preceding night (22–23 October: 68 jet drones among 140 intercepted) and the following night (24–25 October: 92 jet drones among 153 launched). The report does not say how many jet drones were launched in total.
This is a single source: ArmyInform, the news agency of the Ukrainian Ministry of Defence, relaying Ukrainian Air Force figures; the claims have not been independently verified.
Ukraine strikes Tolyattikauchuk synthetic-rubber plant and an aircraft at Yeysk; Russian MoD claims 616 drones downed
2026-10-24
According to the Ukrainian General Staff, as reported by Ukrainska Pravda, Ukraine's defence forces struck the Tolyattikauchuk plant in Tolyatti (Samara Oblast) and an aircraft at the Yeysk airfield in Krasnodar Krai on 23 October and the night of 23–24 October. At Tolyatti an explosion and fire were recorded near the facility; photos and videos shared by monitoring Telegram channels showed a major fire, and locals reported continued drone sightings and a possible evacuation at carmaker AvtoVAZ. The plant makes synthetic rubber, monomers, fractions and high-octane petrol additives; the General Staff says its synthetic rubber is used, among other things, in solid rocket propellant for tactical and ballistic missiles. It was previously attacked on the night of 11–12 September. The same strike package included the Proton-Electrotex plant in Oryol (components for S-71 Kovyor and Iskander-M missiles, Pantsir-S1), already reported earlier, where a hit on the main production building is now described as confirmed.
At Yeysk, home of Russian naval aviation training, the General Staff reported only that "an aircraft" was struck and that the extent of the damage is being assessed. Neither the aircraft type nor any imagery-based damage assessment has been published so far; no independent confirmation of the Yeysk hit was found.
The Russian Ministry of Defence, via TASS, claimed that air defences destroyed 616 Ukrainian fixed-wing drones between 20:00 Moscow time on 23 October and 08:00 on 24 October over 22 regions (including Samara, Oryol, Krasnodar, Moscow region, Tatarstan and Crimea) and the Sea of Azov and Black Sea, without a regional breakdown. Both the Ukrainian General Staff's strike claims and the Russian MoD's interception figure are official claims by a warring party and have not been independently verified; the MoD statement does not mention any damage on the ground.
«Спецназ ГРУ: 76 лет от глубинной разведки до войны беспилотников» (Source: 'GRU Spetsnaz: 76 years from deep reconnaissance to drone warfare')
2026-10-24SINGLE SOURCE
Published by Topwar author Anatoly Blinov for Russia's Day of Special-Purpose Units (24 October), the article traces the history of army/GRU spetsnaz. It starts with directive No. Org/2/395832 of 24 October 1950, signed by Defence Minister Vasilevsky and Chief of the General Staff Shtemenko, which created 46 separate special-purpose companies (120 men each, about 5,520 in total by May 1951) to find enemy nuclear delivery means, airfields, command posts and communication nodes deep behind the front. It describes the cut to 11 companies in 1953, the five separate battalions of 1957 (26th, 27th, 36th, 43rd, 61st), the cadre brigades formed from 1963 and the Pechory training unit from 1970. For Afghanistan it mentions the Taj Beg palace operation (December 1979), the hunt for caravans and the 'Zavesa' border-interdiction system from 1984, with a 1986 episode involving reconnaissance group No. 322 of Lt. Igor Beskrovnykh.
For the present, the article draws mainly on two Rossiyskaya Gazeta reports from July 2025 about a detachment of the 22nd Spetsnaz Brigade (commander callsign 'Viking') in Zaporizhzhia Oblast. According to these, open steppe and constant enemy drone surveillance make covert movement on foot difficult, so the unit relies more on UAVs and technical sensors to observe roads and settlements. A fighter callsign 'Byk' 3D-prints UAV parts, a field workshop repairs equipment, and the unit tested an experimental small remote-controlled ground cargo platform. The required skill set is said to have expanded to UAV operators, repair technicians, electronics specialists and designers, since drones need power, communications and maintenance and their video must be verified and tied to the terrain.
The author stresses that other troops now also use tactical drones and that a drone alone does not make a unit special forces; deep target-finding can partly be done remotely, but enemy air and electronic surveillance makes human reconnaissance harder. The picture of the drone era rests on one unit's reports and is generalised to the whole branch. This is a single source: Topwar (Voennoye Obozreniye), a Russian pro-government military-news site; the claims have not been independently verified.
Large-scale blackout in occupied Crimea after drone attack, Taman 500/220 kV substation likely hit
2026-10-24
On the night of 24 October 2026 widespread power outages hit occupied Crimea after drone attacks on energy infrastructure on the peninsula and in Russia. Militarnyi, citing the monitoring channel Exilenova+, reports that Sevastopol, Simferopol, Yalta, Feodosia, Dzhankoi, Alushta and Yevpatoria lost power. A likely cause is damage to the 500/220 kV Taman substation on the Taman Peninsula in Krasnodar Krai; NASA's FIRMS satellite service registered a thermal anomaly there, which may indicate a fire. The extent of the damage has not been independently confirmed. Residents also reported at least four explosions in the Pervomaiske district and Russian air defence activity near Kerch, and preliminary NetBlocks data showed Crimea's internet traffic dropping to near zero. LB.ua notes that a traffic drop alone does not prove a complete peninsula-wide power loss.
On the Russian side, Sevastopol's Russian-installed governor Mikhail Razvozhayev confirmed the city was without power and blamed damage to energy infrastructure outside the city. According to UNITED24 (citing WarTranslated), occupation head Sergei Aksyonov said drones had knocked out key substations and announced rationing of electricity and water. Officials did not confirm that the Taman substation itself was hit. None of the sources gives a number of affected consumers.
The Taman substation matters because it is the 500 kV main hub through which all four lines of Russia's 'energy bridge' across the Kerch Strait pass. Damaging it can limit power to the peninsula, including to industrial and military facilities. Militarnyi recalls that Ukrainian drones already struck the same substation on 20 August 2026, which was also followed by large-scale outages. This fits a Ukrainian campaign that targets Crimea's power supply.
Satellite imagery shows Ukrainian drone strike on Omsk damaged two chemical plants, Omsky Kauchuk and Poliom, and burned out a section of an Ozon warehouse
2026-10-24
Ukrainian drones attacked the northern industrial zone of Omsk in Siberia on 24 October 2026, about 2,500 km from Ukraine according to the Kyiv Independent. Governor Vitaly Khotsenko said drones had "reached the Northern Industrial Cluster", that a logistics hub was hit, and on 25 October that three people had been injured (via the state agency TASS). Ukrainian monitoring channels at the time reported a fire at the Omsky Kauchuk petrochemical plant and a strike on a warehouse of online retailer Ozon.
Satellite images published afterwards by the Telegram channel Absolutely Reliable Source, mapped by Militarnyi on 28 October, show the damage in more detail. At Omsk Kauchuk JSC (Titan group), a fire in the gas fractionation workshop damaged the D3 processing unit, and the D5 unit, which handles the final stage of MTBE production (a high-octane petrol additive), was also damaged. At the neighbouring Poliom LLC, fire engulfed more than 40 tonnes of finished polypropylene stored in an open yard, and inter-plant pipelines were significantly damaged. One section of the Ozon warehouse complex was completely gutted by fire and another partially damaged.
Militarnyi links Omsk Kauchuk's synthetic rubbers to their use in high-energy solid rocket propellants, and notes that Ozon sells military and dual-use goods, citing a study that counted over RUB 25 billion in such orders between August 2025 and July 2026. Earlier, on 8 October, FP-1 drones hit the Omsk oil refinery in the same industrial zone. The damage assessment is based on imagery from an anonymous Telegram channel as interpreted by Militarnyi; Russian authorities have not confirmed damage to the named plants.
Russia fields two new Geran-5 derivatives with optical navigation, aiming for cruise-missile speeds
2026-10-23
Russia has begun using two new jet-powered small cruise missiles that appear to be derivatives of the Geran-5, Militarnyi reported on 23 October, citing its own sources in the Ukrainian Defence Forces and a post by Serhii "Flash" Beskrestnov, adviser to the Ukrainian president on defence technology, who published a photo of the second type on 22 October. The first, referred to as the Geran-5 K5-K, has a smaller swept-back wing, a tail without the vertical wingtip surfaces, and an engine moved from the external dorsal nacelle into the fuselage (first seen in interceptor-drone footage in mid-September). It reportedly uses autonomous optical navigation that corrects its route by matching images of the ground, without satellite navigation, which makes jamming largely ineffective. According to Ukrainian officials quoted by Militarnyi, the design goal is a speed of up to 900 km/h, comparable to the Kh-101 and largely beyond the reach of interceptor drones; there are no measured speed or range figures yet, and range may suffer from the higher fuel consumption. Use is still described as sporadic.
The second type, which Beskrestnov also calls a K5-K, looks markedly different: a box-shaped fuselage with flat sides, a diamond-shaped wing, a V-tail and an air intake moved from the top to the side. Militarnyi assesses that the flat sides simplify production and, together with the V-tail, may reduce radar cross-section. Beskrestnov credits it with optical navigation and greater range, speed and flight altitude; its engine type is not stated. Neither source gives details of the warhead or the launch method.
For reference, the baseline Geran-5 first appeared over Ukraine in January 2026. Ukraine's Defence Intelligence (HUR) described it then as structurally close to Iran's Karrar, powered by a Chinese Telefly turbojet, with a Kometa-M12 jam-resistant satellite-navigation module and a cruise speed that Militarnyi gives as 450–600 km/h, a range of up to 950 km and a maximum take-off weight of up to 850 kg. Militarnyi adds that Russia's combined Geran-4/Geran-5 output has reached about 4,000 per month, mostly Geran-4. The new variants' performance has not been independently verified, and the designations come from Ukrainian sources.
«Перехват прошёл успешно»: США сбили цели ракетами APKWS с октокоптера TRV-150 (Source: ''Interception was successful': US shoots down targets with APKWS rockets fired from a TRV-150 octocopter')
2026-10-23SINGLE SOURCE
Topwar (author Yevgeny Yudzhin) reports that BAE Systems, after good results using the APKWS laser-guided rocket against drones from crewed aircraft, tested it from an uncrewed carrier: the TRV-150 octocopter fitted with a launcher for three APKWS rounds. According to BAE, 'the interception was successful': the drone downed several attack drones in a single sortie without landing to rearm. The article gives no location or date for the test, and notes that the company's footage did not show the actual interception.
The TRV-150 is based on the commercial Malloy Aeronautics T150 and was modified for US Army requirements; Topwar cites a mass of 35–40 kg, a payload of 68 kg, a top speed of up to 108 km/h, a range of 13–37.5 km with payload and an endurance of 36–40 minutes. The type is used by British forces and has been supplied to Ukraine. The article adds that Ukrainian sources credit APKWS with downing Shahed/Geran-type drones.
Commentators cited by Topwar see a TRV-150 armed with APKWS as a way to add a wide-coverage air-defence layer, but the article notes it is unclear how detection and guidance would work in such a set-up. The underlying claim of success comes from the manufacturer. This is a single source: Topwar (Voennoye Obozreniye), a Russian pro-government military-news site; the claims have not been independently verified.
Starlink and Starshield speeds restored for Ukraine's military; Musk says Kyiv violated terms of service
2026-10-23
Since 14 October, Starlink and its military version Starshield stopped working on Ukrainian drones and other unmanned systems moving faster than about 160 km/h (100 mph). This hit Ukraine's interceptor drones against jet-powered Shaheds, as well as front-line logistics; according to AP, commanders reported lost drones and disrupted missions. On 14 October, Mykhailo Fedorov wrote that removing the Starshield speed cap had become critical, and Musk replied that day that Starshield is owned and controlled by the US government and that any limits "are decided by the US military and ultimately POTUS". On 23 October, Zelensky (at the Hudson Institute) said the limits were still in force despite Trump's claim that Musk had "put it back", and that deliveries of interceptor missiles against Russian ballistic missiles were still delayed.
On 24 October, Zelensky said restoration had begun overnight and that by the morning speeds were where the military needs them. He thanked members of Congress, the media, the State Department and the US president — according to Euromaidan Press, not Musk or SpaceX. Ukraine's Defence Ministry said its monitoring recorded stable connections at speeds above 400 km/h; Defence Minister Yevhen Khmara credited direct dialogue with the president. These figures come from Ukrainian officials and have not been independently verified. The Wall Street Journal and CBS News reported that Musk himself was behind the slowdown; the WSJ (as cited by the Kyiv Independent) also reported that Trump ordered Musk on 21 October to lift it. Accounts of Trump's own statements differ: according to AP he said he had not made the call, while Euromaidan Press reports he said on 24 October that he had spoken to Musk about Ukraine, without giving details. Rubio and Hegseth denied administration involvement, Vice President Vance hinted at coordination with Musk, and Senator Richard Blumenthal has asked the Pentagon who ordered the restrictions.
On X on 24 October, Musk wrote that Ukraine's military "violated Starlink terms of service and used it for offensive drone strikes to kill people" and that the "loophole was closed last week"; he called Starshield "a different system" controlled by the US government. He added that if Starlink were turned off, "the Ukrainian front line would collapse immediately", calling this "NOT a threat" but a statement of fact, and described Starlink as the only system that cannot be jammed or destroyed "at least for now". Overnight he added: "We simply enforced our terms of service when they were bypassed. There has been no change to our terms of service." He gave no evidence, cases or time frames. TASS, a Russian state agency, presented this as Musk confirming access was restricted over the violation. Ukrainian figures reject the claim: presidential adviser Serhii "Flash" Beskrestnov says that since February 2026 every Starlink terminal over Ukraine, occupied areas included, has been capped at 70–90 km/h and does not work over Russia, so commercial Starlink "physically" cannot be used for deep or mid-range strikes. Serhii Sternenko, a former adviser to Fedorov at the Defence Ministry, says any terminal used on the move has had to be whitelisted and connected to Starshield since February, so drone missions were only possible via Starshield, and that Ukraine did not violate the terms. European governments help pay for the service: Germany under a contract running to April 2027, and Poland around $50 million a year. Who ordered the restrictions, and their removal, has not been publicly established.
Seized Metro Russia business 'donates' RUB 1 billion (US$12.4m) to war-support foundation
2026-10-23
Ukrainska Pravda reports, citing the Latvia-based Russian outlet Meduza, that Metro Russia has donated RUB 1 billion (about US$12.4 million) to support Russia's war against Ukraine. Metro Russia is the Russian business of the German wholesale chain Metro and has been under Russian state 'temporary management' since September. According to a company statement, the money went to the foundation 'The People's Front. Everything for Victory!'. The foundation is to use it to supply Russian units with technical equipment such as specialised vehicles, communications systems, reconnaissance assets and anti-drone equipment.
Metro Russia's CEO Johannes Tholey is quoted as saying that, as part of Russia's economic system, the company considers it important to take part in the state's strategic initiatives. At the end of September Vladimir Putin had signed a decree placing Metro's Russian assets under 'temporary management'. The case shows how seized foreign assets are being used to finance equipment for the war effort. Ukrainska Pravda bases this on Meduza and the company's own statement; the amount and how the money is spent have not been independently verified.
Russian Geran-type drone crashes near homes and energy facility in Moldova; Chisinau expels Russian embassy employee
2026-10-23
On 23 October 2026 drone wreckage was found in the village of Chiștelnița, in Moldova's Telenești district, about 100 metres from a residential building. Early reports said no one was injured. Moldovan President Maia Sandu said on X that a Russian Geran-type strike drone had violated Moldovan airspace and crashed near homes and an energy facility. She added that Russia's war continues to endanger Moldovans.
The Moldovan Foreign Ministry said on Telegram that it "resolutely condemns" the airspace violation and the drone incident. In response, one employee of the Russian embassy in Chisinau will be declared persona non grata. Sandu confirmed the expulsion in the same statement. TASS reported the expulsion without naming who operated the drone and without carrying a Russian response.
This is not the first such incident. On 16 October Moldovan police found the wreckage of a drone that had crashed and exploded in a field between the villages of Codrenii Noi and Scăieni in the Dondușeni district. Moldova's attribution of the 23 October drone as a Russian Geran has not been independently confirmed in the sources.
Ukraine carries out first known aerial casualty evacuation by heavy-lift drone: Heavy Shot Ayudag-6 extracts wounded soldier after 491 days in the grey zone near Kupiansk
2026-10-23
On 4 October 2026 Ukrainian forces evacuated a wounded infantryman from the grey zone on the Kupiansk front by heavy drone. Ukrainska Pravda and Reuters (republished by Meduza) both call it the first known operation of its kind. The soldier is Kostiantyn "Magura" Vlasenko of the 2nd Mechanised Battalion, 30th Separate Mechanised Brigade. He had held a position on the left bank of the Oskil River since 2 June 2025. On 14 February 2026 a Russian drone-dropped munition wounded him in both legs. He lost one foot and amputated the other himself. For months he could not be reached: the area was mined, Russian infantry had infiltrated around his position, and Russian FPV and reconnaissance drones attacked anything that moved. A ground robot sent to fetch him was destroyed on the way (Reuters says two), and infantry groups also failed. Drones resupplied him every four to five days.
The aircraft was the Heavy Shot Ayudag-6 from Gurzuf Defence, a modular heavy-lift logistics drone with a cargo winch. Ukrainska Pravda gives its payload as up to 130 kg. Reuters reports roughly 90 kg over up to 25 km, so the sources disagree. The drone was adapted over about six months with help from the 92nd Separate Assault Brigade's unmanned ground systems company. The day before the flight it delivered a mountaineering harness (a Petzl Pitagor evacuation triangle) and a phone with instruction videos, so the soldier could clip himself to the winch cable. Reuters puts the cable height at about 70 m. The drone flew at first light without fog, at a time when Russian drone activity had been assessed as lowest. It used Starlink for control, and Ukrainska Pravda says no jamming was detected. Several measures protected it: Vampire heavy bomber drones flew decoy sorties in neighbouring sectors to draw Russian anti-aircraft FPV operators (one Vampire was shot down), an Autel quadcopter watched overhead, a Lucky Strike interceptor drone stood ready to ram Russian UAVs, and 10th Army Corps artillery fired on identified Russian drone-launch points. Units from the 14th and 43rd Mechanised Brigades also took part, with EW support from the 3rd Army Corps. The 16 km route needed a battery swap at a pre-positioned ground team. The soldier was then handed to a Peacemaker unmanned ground vehicle, which drove him another 8 km to a vehicle and a stabilisation point. Reuters gives different figures: a 15 km distance and a 15-minute flight. Ukrainska Pravda says the drone was airborne for under 1.5 hours in total. Vlasenko is now in rehabilitation in Kharkiv.
The operation matters for tactics because ground casualty evacuation in the drone-saturated 'kill zone' has become nearly impossible, and the 'golden hour' is now rarely achievable. The developer itself warns against treating this as a new routine. Gurzuf co-founder Pavlo Feldblium calls aerial evacuation a last resort that needs unique, multi-unit planning (about 15 personnel, two months of planning, seven days of pre-flight preparation). Without decoys, escorts and counter-battery fire, he says, the slow drone with its underslung load would have been shot down by the first Russian interceptor. Gurzuf will nevertheless fit its mass-produced Ayudag-6 drones with evacuation mounting kits and is developing variants with higher payloads. The details come from Ukrainian military participants and the developer, and from Vlasenko's own account. They have not been independently verified.
Iran unveils Arash-3 strike drone with payload of up to 150 kg; predecessor Arash-2 reportedly linked to Russia
2026-10-23
Militarnyi reports that the commander-in-chief of the Iranian Army, Amir Hatami, has presented a new strike drone, the Arash-3, in a report by Rasadkadeh TV. According to the Iranian military, its payload rises from about 50 kg on the previous version to 100–150 kg. They also say AI improves its accuracy and that it carries more types of GPS-independent navigation. The drone has a piston engine, takes off with solid-fuel boosters, and carries a gevechtskop with incendiary and explosive material. Iran claims the upgrades raise its potential damage by about 2.3 times. The article gives no range, speed or dimensions for the Arash-3.
The relevance to Russia lies with the predecessor. The Arash-2, developed in the early 2020s from the Arash-1, has a cruise speed of about 100 km/h, a length of about 4.5 m, a wingspan of about 4 m, and a reported range of up to 2,000 km. According to Militarnyi, the Arash-2 may have been transferred to Russia. Reports in 2022 suggested that Iranian instructors were training Russian personnel on it. In 2025 an Arash-2 kamikaze drone, possibly launched from Russia, crashed in Kazakhstan. The article does not say whether the Arash-3 will go to Russia. The performance figures are Iranian claims and have not been independently verified.
««Ковер» над столицей: атаки воздушных шаров на аэропорты Москвы» (Rybar: ''Kover' over the capital: balloon attacks on Moscow's airports')
2026-10-23SINGLE SOURCEMILBLOGGER
Rybar reports that on 23 October a Ukrainian attack on the Moscow region caused Sheremetyevo, Domodedovo, Vnukovo and Zhukovsky airports to stop all arrivals and departures for several hours. Citing Moscow's mayor, it says 26 UAVs were shot down in the Moscow region since the night, and that according to preliminary information around fifty drones carried on weather balloons were launched towards the capital via Bryansk oblast. The 'Kover' (Carpet) airspace-closure plan was activated: dozens of airliners were diverted to alternate airfields and more than a hundred (by other accounts more than three hundred) flights were delayed. UAV debris was reportedly found near Sheremetyevo Terminal D, where an air-raid alert was declared and passengers were moved to shelters; Rybar also mentions an evacuation of the 'IQ-kvartal' in Moscow-City, which houses the ministries of economic development, industry and trade, and digital development.
According to Rybar, a large share of the means used were not strike drones but empty decoys without a warhead, a tactic it says Ukraine has used for months against both Moscow and St Petersburg. It notes that older UJ-22 drones, once Ukraine's main long-range strike UAV, reappeared and are now used mainly to saturate air defences, especially in combination with balloons. The channel argues the tactic costs next to nothing compared with the surface-to-air missiles expended, while shutting the capital's aviation hub for hours causes losses of many millions.
Rybar concludes that 100% air defence does not exist, but that a multi-echelon air-defence system with various interceptors, from FPV drones to laser systems, can strengthen protection. This is a single source: Rybar, a pro-war Russian military Telegram channel writing in its own editorial voice, not the position of the Russian MoD; milbloggers can contradict each other and the MoD (Dva Mayora, citing Sobyanin, gives a figure of 155 UAVs for the same night), and the claims have not been independently verified.
«Беспилотники ВСУ атаковали промышленное предприятие в Пермском крае» (Bron: 'Ukrainian drones attacked an industrial enterprise in Perm Krai')
2026-10-23SINGLE SOURCE
Topwar reports, citing Perm Krai governor Dmitry Makhonin on the 'Max' messenger, that Ukrainian drones attacked an unnamed industrial enterprise in Perm Krai on 23 October. According to the governor, air-defence crews and mobile fire groups destroyed 20 drones. The industrial facility was 'slightly' damaged, windows in apartment blocks in Berezniki and Solikamsk were broken, and no one was hurt. A drone-danger alert declared that morning was still in force.
Topwar presents this as part of a trend of Ukrainian strikes on Russian regions far from the combat zone. It recalls that an industrial site in Perm Krai was also damaged on 25 September, when Perm airport suspended arrivals and departures for several hours because of Ukrainian drones.
This is a single source: Topwar (Voennoye Obozreniye), a Russian pro-government military-news site, relaying the regional governor's claims; the claims (including the interception figure) have not been independently verified.