A new command for the UAV Forces has been created in the Armed Forces of Ukraine

The Armed Forces of Ukraine have created a new command of the UAV Forces, which will counter Russian attack drones.

This was reported by the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Oleksandr Syrskyi.

To this end, he ordered the assignment of officers with combat experience to the Air Force command staff, who provided proposals for the development of "small air defense".

"Small air defense is one of the most dynamic and technological areas of modern warfare. Accordingly, decisions here must be quick, clear, and non-standard," Syrskyi noted.

He added that additional crews are being trained in this direction and protection against drones in front-line regions is being strengthened.

Hundreds of crews of unmanned aircraft complexes have already been transferred under the operational control of the Air Force group. They are performing tasks in the I-III echelons of interception.

At the same time, Syrskyi stressed that in this direction not everything depends only on the professionalism of the military. According to the commander-in-chief, the pace of work of Ukrainian and European manufacturers, as well as supplies of radar stations, unmanned aerial systems and interceptor drones from Western partners, remain decisive.

• At the end of January, the Defense Minister Mikhail Fedorov reported that the command of the “small air defense” was being formed under the leadership of the new deputy head of the Air Force Pavlo Yelizarov.
• This direction was headed by Yevhen Khlebnikov, an officer with combat and management experience. He served in the anti-aircraft missile troops of the Air Force, worked in the General Staff in the direction of air defense development.
• During the defense of Kyiv and Chernihiv regions at the beginning of the full-scale Russian invasion, Khlebnikov directed the use of the “Bayraktar” UAV, participated in planning the operation to liberate the Snake Island, and in 2014-2015 he participated in the battles for the Donetsk airport.

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