Russia makes 6,000 Shaheds by Sept. 2024, Ukraine gets same number of 'kamikaze' drones

This data, broken down by type of drones supplied to the Ukrainian military, was shared by the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine. For context, Russia managed to produce the same number—6,000 units—of its Shahed drones by September 2024, Defense Express reports.

Ukrainian production matches Russian scale

By the end of 2024, Ukraine's defense industry reached production levels for long-range 'kamikaze' drones equivalent to Russia's output of Shahed drones. However, there are some nuances:

Russia's production of Shahed-136/131 drones can be tracked with specific timelines. For instance:

• January-April 2024: Russia produced an average of 410 Shaheds per month.
• May-July 2024: Production slightly decreased to 371 units per month.
• August 2024: Output surged to 790 units per month, though the reasons for this spike remain unclear.

Notably, Russia's production facility at Alabuga reached its 6,000-unit goal a year ahead of schedule—it was originally planned for September 2025. This indicates that Russia achieved an average annual production rate of 4,700 Shaheds.

Impact and effectiveness of drone strikes

Despite increased production, the intensified use of Shahed drones by Russia has not led to a significant improvement in strike accuracy against Ukrainian targets.

On the other hand, Ukraine's deployment of 6,000 long-range 'kamikaze' drones has had a strategic impact. Ukrainian drone strikes on Russian oil refineries in spring 2024 proved highly effective, as did strikes on Russian ammunition depots. Within two weeks, these attacks reduced the intensity of Russian artillery shelling by 1.5 times—achieving more than two years of sanctions had managed to do.

This highlights the significant strategic advantage that Ukraine’s domestically-produced drones bring to its defense efforts.