In honor of the closing fundraising for the UAV, we have prepared an article for you, where we described in detail, as far as possible, the essence of the profession of “UAV operator” and all its nuances and subtleties.
Until February 24, 2022, when it came to drones, the first thing that came to mind was high — quality video shooting of landscapes. Basically, the drone was associated with entertainment, possibly a film set and other leisure activities.
Now in Ukraine, associations with a drone are somewhat different — intelligence, elimination of the enemy.
Technologies are rapidly developing and being implemented. This applies to all spheres of human activity, and war is no exception.
The war in Ukraine has changed many previously established “laws and regulations” of war. For example, the military profession of a UAV operator was popularized.
Despite the fact that this “technology” at the front is no longer new. The industry experienced great popularity and modernization precisely during the full-scale invasion.
Interestingly, earlier Ukraine focused on the US Army, which was armed with quite large and very expensive drones, the cost of which could reach several million dollars. However, the benefits of them are much less than from small Chinese UAVs, the cost of which, depending on the type, ranges from 300 to 3000 dollars. But it can be more expensive.
Because drones are consumable. Therefore, its cost should be kept to a minimum. In addition, a large drone is easier to detect and shoot down.
Although in the early days of a full-scale invasion, it was Bayraktar that played a big role. However, then the situation at the front was different — russian equipment was traveling in large columns from all sides.
Accordingly, hitting one tank or armored vehicle from the column, a certain amount of equipment around also burned down.
While now in Ukraine the positional war is therefore a priority — invisibility.
However, working as a UAV operator is actually not easy, as it may seem, at first glance — you calmly control a drone from a tablet and that’s it.
In addition to the fact that each type of UAV has its own characteristics, which must be thoroughly studied. In general, aerial reconnaissance is not just about controlling a drone.
There are three main areas of activity of UAV operators:
- Aerial reconnaissance — detection of the enemy. Namely, the movement of personnel and equipment, intelligence about the exact location of headquarters and equipment of enemy positions.
- Artillery adjustment — determining the exact coordinates of the target from images from the drone and quickly transmitting this data to artillery group. Most often, this is done by a group of aerial scouts as part of an artillery brigade. These people are not only well versed in military topography. They are also well aware of the specifics of the work of artillery and the type of weapon that is in service in their brigade. Up to the fact that such aerial scouts take into account the angle from which the gun fires when transmitting coordinates.
- Control of attack UAVs is a separate area that requires sapper training and skills in working with explosives. In addition, some types of drones are controlled by expensive VR glasses (FPV drones), which also requires special training.
In general, aerial reconnaissance is an effective way of development. And most importantly — with low losses of personnel, which is an absolute priority. Especially considering that Ukraine has many times fewer personnel than russia.
Human life is invaluable. So, a drone worth about three thousand dollars is a priori more profitable, even if it takes off once.
In addition, the drone transmits data more quickly than a human. A person needs to physically overcome the way back and forth, photograph and schematically redraw the area, and most importantly — not to get injured or die.
While the drone only reaches its point, the operator immediately receives all the necessary and accurate information and at the same time transmits it, for example, to artillery. Even if the enemy destroys the drone, the area captured by it is already on the operator’s tablet.
Also, thanks to the UAV, the Ukrainian military warns in time about the movement of the enemy and his subsequent plans. Accordingly, this can save more than one life. According to rough estimates, one drone saves the lives of at least 50 Ukrainian soldiers.
The FPV drone is even more profitable. After all, under the condition of a cost of 300 dollars, it hits enemy equipment worth hundreds of thousands and millions of dollars.
But returning to the nuances of drone control, it is worth noting that not everyone is capable of this. Although there are many applicants, most of them want to become an operator because of the desire to move a little away from the front line.
Any of the directions in aerial reconnaissance requires a good memory in order to recognize the territory.
“When I was flying the drone, I tried not to fly on the same route depending on the situation. That is, for example, when you need to make several flights to the same point, I flew to the target from one side, and returned from the other. For the fact that the enemy could not understand where the drone was taking off from. After all, as soon as the enemy understands where you are driving the drone from, a shell will immediately fly to you,” told us Fin, an intelligence officer in the National Guard.
In addition, the UAV operator must be an extremely attentive person. For example, it is not uncommon for them to move past mined areas or in areas with obstacles. Such a person should be well-versed in sounds and understand topography without additional devices. The operator must be able to correctly mask and strengthen the position from which it is working.
An air scout is tasked with monitoring the electromagnetic field. He also has to keep an eye on his technical devices. Because if you forget to turn something off, the enemy can recognize the signal and strike at the group. In addition, it is necessary to use walkie-talkies on closed frequencies so that they are not listened to by the enemy. Although sometimes aerial scouts use open radio frequencies, or misinform the enemy.
One of the most important factors is working under enemy electronic warfare equipment. In fact, it is an antenna that emits a large number of radio frequencies, that is, radio noise.
While drones operate at certain frequencies, which are used to communicate between the drone and the control panel.
Electronic warfare silences the entire communication channel so that the signal does not pass between the drone and the remote control.
“The drone is linked to a certain point on the ground using GPS coordinates. Thanks to this, it fights the wind, but remains at a certain point. When electronic warfare equipment works, GPS does not work.
Therefore, the drone “does not understand” where it is located and cannot gain a foothold in the place where it is located. So it’s blown away by the wind like a balloon. Therefore, the operator must personally fight the wind, stay on target and control the camera. It’s all skill and skillful hands,” Fin explained.
In addition, the operator will need to return the drone by heart to the area from which it took off, and this can be a dozen kilometers.
In addition, electronic warfare devices jam the signal of radio stations, which interferes with the effective coordination of the work of units.
However, on October 10, Deputy Prime Minister of Innovation, Development of Education, Science and Technology – Minister of Digital Transformation Mykhailo Fedorov announced that Ukrainian developers have created the Himera radio station. This is a unique technology that works under enemy electronic warfare systems. Now the russians will not be able to block the radio signals and decipher it.
Moreover, such a walkie-talkie can be integrated into a situational awareness system or used as a GPS beacon to search for and evacuate soldiers. You can manage the radio station system simply through the app on phone.
