Ukrainian combat
UAV Backfire, resistant to electronic warfare (EW) countermeasures,
has been successfully tested on the battlefield and will enter mass production
pending approval from the Defense Ministry, Ukraine’s Digital Transformation
Minister Mykhailo Fedorov said in a Telegram post on Nov. 20.
The drone is equipped with a GPS antenna that is "nearly impossible to jam." Fedorov also mentioned that fully autonomous controls prevent the piloting team from being detected by the enemy.
Backfire can penetrate up to 35 kilometers behind enemy lines to strike artillery, logistics hubs, depots, and command posts of the enemy forces.
The government will be able to officially procure Backfires once the Defense Ministry issues a permit for its use.
The drone was developed by Ukrainian specialists who are part of the Brave1 defense cluster. They are preparing for mass production of Backfires, Fedorov added.
On Nov. 14, Fedorov reported that Ukraine is scaling up the production of its naval drones.