Ukraine lifts veil on Raid drone regiment behind strikes deep inside Russia

NV journalist Serhii Okunev learned details of the unit’s work within the Raid 413th Separate Unmanned Systems Regiment, spoke with its commander and became the first journalist to see the unit carry out a combat mission involving a deep strike inside Russia. This is NV’s exclusive report.

The secret musician in the orchestra: When and how the new unit began striking Russia

For many months, Ukrainians have started their mornings with news of new fires, explosions or drone overflights in Russian regions. The final stage — when Ukrainian drones hit targets and Russian oil refineries burn for days — is the loudest and most visible part of the operation. But few people know what the preparation and execution of these attacks look like, or what happens in the hours before Ukrainian drones cross the border and begin approaching their targets.

It may seem as though such operations require huge amounts of equipment and large numbers of Ukrainian troops. Launching Soviet ballistic missiles, for example, requires massive launchers, transport-loading vehicles, armored personnel vehicles and a large security detail. Ukrainian deep-strike operations work very differently.

NV met the deep-strike unit on the outskirts of a city. A few hours before launch, no more than a dozen service members gathered there: some in civilian clothes, others in shorts and bucket hats. Instead of costly armored vehicles or launchers, there were ordinary minivans. Civilians standing nearby in line for coffee would hardly guess that, later that night, these men would cause tens or even hundreds of millions of dollars in damage to Russian forces by disabling or destroying another important enemy site.

Deep-strike units are undoubtedly among Russia’s highest-priority targets. After the painful blows Russian industrial and military sites sustained in 2026, hunting Ukrainian teams responsible for deep attacks has become almost a top task for Russia. If the enemy learns any details — deployment sites, movements, concentrations or launch points — it will use every available method and means to reach Ukraine’s deep-strike crews. That is why the units try to look as inconspicuous as possible. While there is still time for coffee, the fighters and commanders share the team’s history.

The Ukrainian drones launching tonight will be operated by fighters from the Raid 413th Separate Unmanned Systems Regiment. The regiment has long been known as part of Ukraine’s Unmanned Systems Forces. Its troops have successfully destroyed Russian forces with FPV drones, carried out strikes with Baba Yaga drones and hunted enemy air defense systems. But in 2026, the commander of the Unmanned Systems Forces unexpectedly began naming Raid among the units conducting deep strikes on enemy territory. That was the first public sign that Raid had a dedicated unit systematically carrying out deep-strike missions.

NV has learned for the first time that Raid has, in fact, been involved in deep strikes for several years. The unit has repeatedly attacked enemy industrial sites, military targets in Russia’s rear and was even behind one strike on the Russian strategic aviation base in Engels. But throughout that time, the regiment’s role was not disclosed. The successful strikes were reported in the media, but no one outside a narrow circle of military personnel knew Raid was behind them. In 2026, the decision was made to come out of the shadows.

In the second half of 2025, the regiment created a battalion intended to move its deep-strike work onto a more systematic and larger scale. The battalion commander, who uses the call sign Schultz, said the core of the team was formed while still part of the 14th Separate Unmanned Systems Regiment. Raid is widely believed to have largely grown out of that unit before expanding into a separate force. That core team took part in deep strikes that had not been previously reported.

“Preparations for the battalion had been going on for some time, but systematic work in deep strike began after New Year’s 2026,” Schultz told NV. “The fighters in our battalion are experienced, but literally a year and a half ago, most of my personnel were FPV operators, operators of attack fixed-wing drones, bomber crews and reconnaissance drone crews. With the change in specialization and the scaling up, we needed a couple of months to rebuild logistics, the unit structure, the management component, training, experience and then move into planned, systematic work. But now we can say we are fully on track. This is already stable work.”

In several months of operating in the new format, Schultz’s unit has already taken part in some of the most successful and high-profile strikes against Russia. They include the attack on the oil-loading station in Tuapse, the destruction of a significant part of the port of Ust-Luga, the recent attack on Moscow and several successful attacks on Russian ships. Despite the impressive results, Schultz asks that one point be emphasized: the success of Ukrainian strikes cannot be separated out and claimed by any single unit.

“You understand, this field is like an orchestra,” he said. “Good music happens only when all the musicians and all the instruments play well and in sync. You cannot say, ‘I played wonderfully,’ if the rest of the music is bad. We now have colleagues in this field, and there are already quite a few of them. The result exists, and you can see it, only because our actions are coordinated. So you cannot say, ‘Schultz’s unit destroyed Tuapse,’ or anything like that. This is truly teamwork.”

Despite the unit’s already substantial list of targets hit, some fighters — perhaps even most of a crew — may not know immediately before a launch where the drones they are launching are headed. That, too, is done for mission security: any leaks could allow the enemy to prepare or even derail the mission entirely.

Preparing an effective operation can take not hours, but weeks. It involves collecting information about the target, countering enemy air defense systems, punching a “corridor” through Russian defenses and only then launching the drones. Each stage requires a high level of information security and secrecy.

After a brief gathering, the group of soldiers heads to the launch site. The most critical stage begins.

“We can be anywhere”: How deep strikes work and what critical advantages Ukrainian drones provide

A deep-strike drone launch point is one of the most coveted targets for Russian intelligence. The military takes serious steps to protect itself, but unexpectedly, the drone itself becomes a key asset. One of the most widely used drones for deep strikes is made by Fire Point. While journalists, experts and social media users debate scandals involving the company, its owner and the Mindich tapes, Fire Point has significantly expanded production and adapted its drones to modern battlefield conditions.

One of the key, critical advantages of these drones is the launch system. Some Ukrainian deep-strike drones — such as the AN-196 Liutyi — launch from landing gear, which imposes certain requirements on the launch site. A level surface, specific terrain and road surface are needed. Even then, there can be many possible launch points, but the enemy knows at least the rough criteria it can use to track locations.

With FP-1 and FP-2 drones, launch is carried out using a rocket booster. The drones are transported in trucks. A launch site is then chosen with almost no restrictions: a road, an open field or a riverbank. The booster helps the drone quickly gain speed and altitude, effectively firing it into the air like a slingshot. The main engine then begins putting the UAV on its route.

“There are many advantages to FP drones specifically. We have something to compare them with. The launch itself, yes, is a huge advantage,” said Keks, commander of a deep-strike crew in the Raid 413th Separate Unmanned Systems Regiment. “First, deployment and preparation for launches happen quite quickly. Second, we are not tied to any large infrastructure sites. The point is that we can be anywhere. That makes it much harder for the enemy to find us. And if our launch point is compromised after the launches have already happened, that creates almost no problem for us. Tomorrow we will not be here. The point is not that we can change location tomorrow. The point is that we definitely will.”

He gives brief comments while almost simultaneously supervising his subordinates. At the launch site, no one is walking around in shorts and T-shirts anymore. Service members put on body armor and helmets. A medic is present.

“Since the days of the anti-terrorist operation, I have seen all kinds of things involving safety procedures or negligence,” battalion commander Schultz said. “So ever since then, I have constantly been on everyone’s back about safety. And thank God, so far it is producing results. Our field is high-tech. Operators, specialists and engineers are worth their weight in gold. So we have to use every possible means to protect them.”

Another important factor in safety and effectiveness is that the crew does not launch hundreds or thousands of drones from one location. Several different teams work from different sites, sometimes at a very significant distance from one another. That reduces launch time and increases the safety of crews dispersed across different locations. FP drones also have a very fast deployment and launch-preparation process. NV sources in Ukraine’s Defense Forces say some other deep-strike drones require hours of preparation directly at the launch site, which also puts personnel at risk. With FP drones, the process is much faster.

“The main thing is no ‘draft dodgers’ today,” one UAV operator jokes.

In this case, the soldiers jokingly use “draft dodgers” to refer to drones that develop problems before or during launch. Any weapon, even the most expensive and reliable one, can have technical problems. Fortunately, such failures are isolated cases.

The launch itself is striking. The rocket booster roars, throwing out flame, sparks and smoke as it quickly pushes the drone into the air. The team is fully focused: if one of the aircraft fails to take off for technical reasons, urgent action will be needed.

This time, all the drones take off. By morning, Ukrainians will once again read in the news about the results of the Raid crews’ work.

“We see a giant standing on straw legs”: How Russia is losing air defenses as Ukraine expands strikes

When asked about deep strikes, battalion commander Schultz often touches on related issues: mobilization, motivation, the ideology of the unit’s service members and the systematic nature of the work. Schultz’s battalion does far more than launch FP drones or other long-range UAVs. Recently, there has also been significant progress in so-called middle-strike operations.

Middle strikes are medium-depth attacks targeting enemy logistics, air defense systems, radars, command posts and enemy UAV operators. Raid has had significant success in this area, as reflected in repeated reports of new strikes published on the channels of Robert Brovdi, known as Magyar, the commander of the Unmanned Systems Forces.

“I remember the times when, roughly speaking, no one even dreamed of destroying Russian air defense systems,” the commander said. “Then came the first hits, and that was something incredible, the main event in the unit. Now our intensity is very high. Sometimes even several enemy air defense units a week.”

However, he said figures in this context should be treated very carefully.

“Why? For example, some time ago we entered one sector and hit a large number of enemy air defenses,” Schultz said. “Then they simply started hiding. It is even funny to say, but they stopped responding to some of their own tasks because they understood that if they revealed themselves, they would be destroyed. So the number of strikes began to fall significantly. But does that mean we started working worse? Definitely not.”

Before the full-scale invasion, Russia had as many air defense systems as all NATO countries combined, according to estimates by the International Institute for Strategic Studies. But it is now suffering enormous losses. In April 2026, OSINT analyst Kyle Glen said the pace of destruction of Russian air defense assets had increased 3.4 times over the previous three months.

Battalion commander Schultz also said he is already seeing significant changes both in the number of air defense systems and in the assets the enemy is using.

“When, in one sector, after my crews work against the enemy, against Buks, Tors and Pantsirs, the enemy rolls out a Kub — the old granddad — to cover a certain area, I understand that we have found the weak spot, and that means we have to press and keep pressing,” Schultz said. “There is a sense that this giant really is standing on straw legs, and that gives further motivation to keep working. If everything continues as it is now, the situation for them should become extremely critical by the fall. But for us to be able to do this work, we need steady supplies of the relevant assets we use to carry out these strikes.”

The Kub air defense system mentioned by the battalion commander is an outdated surface-to-air missile system with limited accuracy and range. It was developed after World War II and entered service in 1963. No one more than half a century ago was thinking about drone warfare.

Schultz cautiously notes that his unit continues to grow, including in deep-strike operations. That coincides with a significant increase in Ukrainian drone production — both well-known models such as Liutyi and FP drones and less-known but effective systems.

In April 2026, French analyst Clement Molin said Ukraine had already overtaken Russia in deep-strike drone attacks. Many called that report overly optimistic, but it can be stated with certainty that over the past year, the number of successful and large-scale Ukrainian attacks has increased dozens of times and become almost a daily occurrence.