Ukrainian drones "destroyed or damaged" over 52,000 Russian targets in October, highlighting the increasing impact of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) on the battlefield, Ukraine's Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi said on Nov. 9.
Syrskyi said that the targets included 129 artillery systems, 221 pieces of radio equipment, and more than 4,000 Russian troops.
"Drone technology is developing rapidly, and we must be one step ahead of the enemy," the general said after a monthly meeting with commanders of drone units.
Syrskyi's statement comes as Ukraine intensifies its attacks both in Russian-occupied territories and in Russia. On Nov. 9, Ukrainian drones struck the Aleksinsky chemical plant, which produces gunpowder and ammunition for the Russian military, in Russia's Tula Oblast, sources at the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) told the Kyiv Independent.
Ukraine is using drone technology to gain an advantage on the battlefield, where its outnumbered and outgunned troops are gradually pulling back.
But despite being limited to the use of long-range kamikaze drones, Kyiv has scored some spectacular success in recent weeks.
One of the largest explosions of the full-scale invasion saw, in the words of a Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) source, an ammunition warehouse "literally wiped off the face of the earth" in Tver Oblast last month.
This came just days after Ukraine confirmed attacks on two other arms depots, with the U.K. Defense Ministry saying that the combined strikes caused "the largest loss of ammunition" in Russia during its all-out war against Ukraine.
