Russians call it Baba Yaga: Ukrainian serviceman tells about hexacopter that became invaders' nightmare

He spoke about this on Espreso TV.

"For a long time, I couldn't understand why they call it Bab Yaga (a witch from Russian fairy tales who flies using a broom or a mortar - ed.). Usually, this drone flies at night, but it makes a lot of noise. And it looks like Baba Yaga's broomstick on top - small but scary. It (the drone - ed.) is equipped with a modern thermal imaging system, so it scans enemy concentrations quite well. It carries a large number of warheads, which sometimes the enemy can multiply by 10 out of fear, because it can normally carry a large number of mines or several anti-tank mines, depending on the situation. That's why it's a dangerous story for them," Volkov explains.

According to the military, this drone successfully passes Russian electronic warfare. Many UAV crews in the defense unit are already skillfully and effectively destroying the invading Russian troops.

What is known about the 'Baba Yaga' drone

The Vampire large attack hexacopter, which the Russian army calls Baba Yaga, has become their nighttime rage. This UAV was so named because it rains down a lot of shells on the Russian troops at night.

The Ukrainian military uses heavy bomber drones to destroy Russian equipment and arsenals in the dark. The drone cannot fly during the day because it is very heavy when fully loaded and can only fly a few tens of meters. In addition, it has a low speed and a loud engine sound. It can lift loads weighing up to 15-20 kg to an altitude of 400 meters and can drop 4 shells at the enemy at the same time.

Although the drone has only recently arrived at the front, it has already demonstrated many successful flights. It replaced lightweight FPV drones that attack the Russian troops during the day.

The drone has a price advantage, which is about $20 thousand. The drone can make 8-12 flights and destroy about 10 targets, including 3-5 pieces of military equipment worth millions of dollars. This UAV can operate independently. Operators specify the coordinates, the drone flies to the target, drops a projectile, and then returns.

Ukrainian company SkyFall produces the Vampire large attack hexacopter. 

The Baba Yaga drone belongs to the Drone Army and has 6 propellers, the same number of ammunition mounts, and several batteries.

Technical characteristics:

• speed - up to 40 km/h with full load, 80 km/h - without load
• flight height - 400 m
• flight range - 10 km
• communication range - 6 km
• flight time: 37 minutes without load and 23 minutes with 10 kg of weight.