Extra fuel tanks found on Russian drones shot down over Poland

The report notes that a basic Gerbera UAV has a single fuel tank in its tail. The drones recovered in Poland, however, were fitted with a second tank in the nose made of multi-layered flexible polymer.

These are essentially “fuel bags” — lightweight, compact when folded, resistant to vibration, and are widely used in slow-flying drones. The additional fuel enabled the Russian drones to fly across Belarus and into Poland.

Polish PM Donald Tusk had earlier reported that 19 Russian drones were detected in the country’s airspace overnight, with some entering from Belarus. Preliminary reports indicated that four were shot down. Poland’s Interior Ministry also confirmed the discovery of debris from an unidentified missile.

One drone struck a residential building in the village of Wyrki-Wola in Lublin Voivodeship. The building was damaged, but no one was injured.

Tusk has asked NATO to invoke Article 4 of the Alliance treaty, which provides for consultations in case of a threat to a member state.