Ukraine’s DIY drones defy Russian jamming – GIS Reports
AI Analysis
Ukraine is increasingly relying on domestically produced drones, particularly fiber-optic tethered FPV drones, to counter Russian electronic warfare and GPS jamming. A key innovation is the repurposing of the drone spool core – Ukrainians use it for avionics, while Russians prioritize explosive payload capacity despite reduced fragmentation. This highlights a strategic divergence: Ukrainian precision versus Russian saturation.
Key Takeaways
- Fiber-optic drones are becoming a significant platform for munitions delivery in EW/GPS-denied environments.
- Ukrainian drone development focuses on efficiency and maximizing the utility of limited resources.
- Russian drone tactics prioritize overwhelming force and mass production, accepting lower per-unit effectiveness.
- The spool core of tethered drones is now being actively utilized for both avionics (Ukraine) and explosives (Russia).
- Ukraine’s reliance on homegrown defense technology is accelerating due to resource constraints and industrial limitations.
Why It Matters
This trend demonstrates the importance of adaptability and innovation in modern drone warfare, particularly in contested electromagnetic spectrums. Ukraine’s success in developing effective counter-EW drones could influence defense strategies globally, while Russia’s approach highlights the potential of mass-produced, expendable drone swarms. The divergence in tactics suggests differing operational philosophies and resource availability.
Ukraine’s DIY drones defy Russian jamming – GIS Reports
In Ukraine’s drone workshops, even the fiber-optic spool’s hollow core becomes vital, highlighting a strategic split: precision versus volume in jammed skies.
Nov. 21, 2025: A workshop in Ukraine’s Donetsk region where fiber-optic drones are both built and repaired. These drones do not rely on radio signals, making them much harder to detect or jam. © Getty Images
In a nutshell
- Ukraine’s home-grown defense technologies are accelerating
- Kyiv’s scalpel strategy uses tech know-how for smarter drones
- Russia’s sledgehammer strategy uses captured tech to scale proven concepts
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This is another installment of the series “ Eyewitness to war” by Dr. Paul Schwennesen, who writes firsthand observations from the Ukrainian front lines.
In a cluttered workshop in central Ukraine, I was handed what looked like a standard fiber-optic spool for a tethered first-person-view (FPV) drone. The fiber was wound tightly around the spool, like a fishing reel. But the technician pointed to the hollow plastic core at the center. “That,” he said, tapping the cavity, “is now useful space.”
Fiber-optic tethered spool drones are no longer niche – they are becoming a substantial and growing subset of munitions-delivery platforms, especially in electronic warfare-jammed or GPS-denied airspace. Strikingly, as these platforms evolve, the spool itself has transformed from a passive “attachment” into viable design real estate.
Both sides now exploit the hollow core. Russians reportedly use it as a chamber for explosive payloads, while Ukrainians are experimenting with turning it into an avionics and telemetry compartment. The Ukrainian engineers explained the trade-off with a kind of clinical detachment that illuminates an underlying difference in approach: When you pack explosives inside the spool core, they said, the surrounding fiber windings act as a damper, reducing fragmentation effectiveness. The Russians, they said with a shrug, do not especially care. “They will just send 10 more drones to finish the job. We have to be more calculating.”
That exchange frames much of what I have seen over the past year. The Ukrainian approach optimizes for fine-tuned efficiencies, while the Russian approach saturates contested space with mass. One side sharpens scalpels, while the other wields sledgehammers.
The workshop
In January 2026, our team visited a drone assembly workshop operated by an unmanned aircraft system strike unit under an elite Ukrainian military directorate. What we observed confirmed a noteworthy trend: Ukraine’s strategic trajectory toward reliance on homegrown defense technology is accelerating markedly.
Resource scarcity, funding constraints and industrial limits force careful allocation and relentless creative iteration. Embedded engineers collaborate directly with private-sector developers, and they constantly refine low-co