Drone warfare in Ukraine: AI-enabled drones, naval vehicles, and drone carriers
Three key stories of the week: Mar. 5 - Mar. 11, 2025
Ahead of the U.S.-Ukraine meeting in Saudi Arabia, Ukraine launched its largest drone attack on Russia since the beginning of the war, demonstrating that not everything relies on American satellites and long-range weapons.
In this week’s digest, we will cover four Ukrainian innovations, including naval drone carriers and aerial drone carriers, both of which are already being used on the front lines. Additionally, we will explore the integration of AI technologies in drone warfare—as Ukrainian officials have stated, AI-guided drone swarms are expected to be deployed in Ukraine as early as this summer.
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Ukraine used unmanned torpedo boats in the Black Sea (Militarnyi + other sources)
According to media reports, Ukrainian naval drones have been equipped with torpedoes or smaller kamikaze naval drones to target surface vessels in the Black Sea. Footage of such a drone in action was published by several Russian sources. According to their claims, the video was recorded during an attack by Ukrainian naval drones on gas extraction infrastructure in the Black Sea.
According to Russians, the alleged weapons carrier was a drone called the "Magura-Venom," supposedly equipped with a twin MANPADS system and two machine guns. However, no publicly available sources confirm the existence of such a drone.
David Axe writes for Forbes, that the robotic drone carriers, jointly operated by the navy and the Security Service of Ukraine, have been in service since last year. But they recently pulled off their most ambitious strike—motoring along the coast of Russian-occupied southern Ukraine and launching FPV drones to blow up a pair of Russian air-defense vehicles: an Osa and a Strela. Early in the war, the USVs exclusively targeted Russian warships. In separate raids on Crimean anchorages in February, May and June 2024, the USVs sank a corvette, a landing ship, a patrol boat and a tugboat.
The Magura V5 is likely the most effective naval drone in the conflict so far, having successfully sunk or damaged multiple Russian surface warships and support vessels. This suicide drone carries a powerful 450-pound explosive payload, capable of destroying most warships when deployed effectively. It also boasts impressive speed, reaching over 42 knots (approximately 50 miles per hour), with an operational range of up to 500 miles. Additionally, the Magura V5 is equipped with advanced onboard technology, including cameras and GPS, allowing it to operate either autonomously or under human control.
"Downing Shaheds Is a Priority": An Interview with the Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (Liuba Balashova for Forbes Ukraine + other sources)
By mid-summer 2025, drone swarms—where AI integrates multiple UAVs into a unified network—will be deployed in Ukrainian combat units, predicts Andriy Lebedenko, Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU).