Russia develops cheap attack drone capable of flying 350 km

Ivan Kyrychevskyi, a military expert at Defence Express, told this on Espreso TV.

He emphasized that the invading forces have to use foreign engines for their drones, because "they could not make their own.”

"They have a specific nuance: for Shahed-type drones, which are supposed to carry several tens or even hundreds of kilograms, they have problems with engines, thank God. They have to buy either Iranian or Chinese engines for the Shahed, because they can't make their own. Even the Lancet is not a Russian design, but Czech electric motors for toy aircraft weighing 5 kg. It's a miracle how they make Lancets weighing 12 kg fly with such small motors," Kyrychevskyi explained.

At the same time, according to the Russians, the Yastreb drone will be cheap, as it is completely assembled from civilian components.

According to media, the drone is currently being tested, and the work on the drone is expected to be completed in the first half of 2024.

Its manufacturer is the Russian design bureau Stratim. Russia calls the drone a low-cost analog of the Iranian Shahed.

"This is a flying wing with coordinated guidance," the Russians say about their Yastreb.

The Russians claim that they are developing two versions of the drone, the difference being the engine: a drone with an internal combustion engine will fly at speeds of up to 300 km/h, and a drone with a jet engine will fly at speeds of up to 700 km/h.

The drone's characteristics are as follows: flight range - up to 350 km, flight weight of the drone - up to 45 kg, warhead - 16 kg, wingspan - 1.5 m.

According to the Russians, their Yastreb is resistant to electronic warfare systems and can enter a target with the help of a machine vision system.

The Russians claim that their drone will "strike targets deep in the enemy's defense." They also want to use the drone as a decoy for air defense.

• On December 13, it became known that Russia had begun mass production of Termite helicopter-type drones, which are larger but slower than Shaheds.