Russia, contrary to sanctions, produces “invisible” UAVs that help destroy the equipment of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
Russia uses foreign components made in Germany, Japan and China to assemble the Kartograph stealth spy drone. This issue of The Times became aware of the report of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine.
Experts found parts in captured drones that could be bought very cheaply abroad: an engine from Germany, a spark plug from Japan, and microprocessors from China inside the cameras. The Ukrainian military believes that these countries should take more stringent measures to prevent the transfer to Russia of dual-use technologies and any products for creating UAVs.
The UAV “Cartograph” is equipped with a 12-lens camera that allows reconnaissance and mapping. It is assumed that Russian troops used such drones in the front zone to search for Ukrainian equipment and assess the situation. “Cartograph” is a secret model, and the Russians did not talk about it in the media, but the APU was noticed on the battlefield. According to the Oryx project, which documented Russian losses, the Ukrainians managed to destroy or capture at least 8 such drones since the beginning of the full-scale war.
The document of the Ministry of Defense states that the destruction of “Cartographers” has become a difficult task for the Ukrainian army. These drones can fly at altitudes of up to 5 km and are therefore invisible to soldiers on the ground and inaccessible to human portable air defense systems. It was possible to hit the UAV only when they were lowered, in addition, they could be detected using special systems for combating drones equipped with radars and laser rangefinders.
One of the first “Cartographers” shot down by the Armed Forces of Ukraine became known at the end of August. Air Command “Centre” reported that anti-aircraft artillery managed to shoot down two Russian aircraft in the southeast direction, and one of them turned out to be a secret “Cartographer” – experts call him the color of the case from Orlan-10 and a 12-lens camera.
In September, the Ukrainian army struck another Mapmaker in the Mykolaiv area. It seems that the drone can transmit the video online to the control center and correct the artillery fire.
Source: Riafan
