Shooting down Iranian “kamikaze” drone costs 7 times more than launching it

The New York Times reported the information.

The outlet cites opinions of experts who agree that Shahed-136 drones that Russia buys from Iran are relatively cheap, while the weapons that Ukraine uses to shoot them down are much more expensive.

"Artem Starosiek, the head of Molfar, a Ukrainian consultancy that supports the country’s war effort, estimated that it costs up to 7 times more to use a missile to shoot down a drone than it does to launch one. The Iranian drones can cost as little as USD 20,000 to produce, while the cost of firing one of the surface-to-air missiles used by Ukraine can range from USD140,000 for a Soviet-era S-300 to USD 500,000 for a U.S.-made NASAM," the media outlet writes.

"That is an imbalance that could over time favor Russia, costing Ukraine and its allies dearly, some analysts say," the NYT adds.

At the same time, Starosiek believes that the cost of shooting down drones with missiles should be considered in context. Shooting down a drone is much cheaper than repairing a damaged or destroyed power plant, he said. In addition, the destruction of UAVs saves human lives.

• On January 3, the Ukrainian Air Force announced the destruction of 100% of Iranian drones launched by Russia in 2 days.
• Iran stubbornly denies supplying Russia with “kamikaze” drones, which Russian launches against Ukraine.