Since it began war in ukrainetwo years and five months ago, all kinds of unmanned vehicles have been seen on the battlefield, to which is now added A new Russian drone that is already being used in combatAccording to the Ukrainian website Defense Express, the UAV is called Gerberaand is a long-range multirole model that can carry out attack and surveillance missions in support of the widely used attack drone Shahed/Geran of Iranian design.
The first evidence of the new drone emerged last week with the publication on Ukrainian social networks of images of a unit that was shot down in the kyiv region on July 24. The drone did not have a warhead installed, indicating that it was being used for a non-attack missionIt was apparently shot down ‘almost undamaged’ by Ukrainian air defences.
A Ukrainian Telegram channel shared photos of a previously unidentified Russian one-way attack UAV downed in Kyiv Oblast. Interestingly, the serial number begins with “Ы,” similar to a Russian-assembled variant of the Shahed-136, suggesting this new UAV may also be made by… https://t.co/bfgsexGes0pic.twitter.com/WpxwQNw2t9
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It has a similar design to the Geranwhich is what the Shaheds produced in Russia are called, but with some differences. Instead of horizontal stabilizers at the wingtips, the Gerbera has a single conventional vertical finlocated just ahead of the propulsion propeller driven by an internal combustion engine. The published information indicates a wingspan of around 2 metres, less than the 2.5 metres of the Geran-2/Shahed-136The drone’s fuselage contains radar-absorbent foam and, like some examples of the Geran, those seen so far are black.
Ukrainian military drone specialist, Serhii Fleshhas pointed out on Telegram that, unlike the Geran, the Gerbera is intended for carry out both reconnaissance and attack missions. He believes that it will be used to ‘distract’ Ukrainian air defense systems, operating as a decoyand that will do so within a ‘swarm’although it is not clear how this would be achieved. It is highly unlikely that these drones would have this ability to work in groups, but it would be possible to send several drones on pre-programmed missions in which each UAV operates autonomously but within the objectives of the overall mission.
These claims are also supported by a video released by a Russian unit called Stalin’s Falcons on July 28, reported by Ukrainian outlet Militarnyi. It also claims that Gerbera can be used as a kamikaze attack drone, for electronic reconnaissance or as a decoy for air defense systems. It has been developed by the Gastello Design Office and is possibly occurring in the same Yelabuga factorywhere the Gerans come from, in the Tatarstan region in southeastern Russia, and which has been the target of attacks by Ukraine.
The attack version of the Gerbera drone uses a camera to aim at the target, which implies a guidance system with human intervention. This may limit your reach, since you have to maintain communication with the human operator, but in this case Another drone, equipped with a repeater, can be used to extend the range from the radio link with the Gerbera drone.
The outlet also indicates that the Gerbera that fell in the kyiv region last week was Equipped with a pair of 3G/4G antennas, as well as a modem with a SIM cardconnecting to the Ukrainian mobile network. It is understood that this is another method of providing a communication channel that can ensure a video link between the drone and the operator, at least in some parts of its flight.
Most details about the Gerbera are still unknown, including its range, speed and payload. The only thing that is certain is that, to reach kyiv, The Gerbera had to fly hundreds of kilometers firstOnce Ukrainian authorities have studied the Gerbera, more details about its capabilities are likely to become known.