The war between Russia and Ukraine is now largely with drones. Ukraine is at the forefront of innovation of drones in wartime, as it produces more than 2 million in 2024 – but Russia is close.
Ailsa chang, host:
The war in Ukraine is now largely fought with drones, and Ukraine at the forefront of drones. Last year, Ukraine made two million drones, or unmanned air vehicles. Large and small drones, from high -tech factories to manufactures of drones from the mother and the base. Eleanor Bnessley reports from NPR.
Eleanor beardsley, byline: In a courtyard surrounded by residential blocks in Kyiv, we walk in some stairs to a small apartment in the basement.
Unexual person No. 1: (Non -English language occurs).
Unexual person No. 2: Andre.
Unlimited person No. 1: Andre. Eleanor.
The non -specific person No. 2: (Non -English language occurs).
Birdzley: Oh, hello.
There are three large dogs that live here. Everywhere they are tables full of drones, tools, landing and urban. So these are drones.
Andrii Yukhno: Yes. It protects from – it is our security.
Birdzley: This is Andrei Yoshko, who supervises this first opinion, this first person, attacks the process of making drones.
Unexual person No. 3: (Non -English language occurs).
(Soundbite from screaming)
Beardsley: Windows covered with paper, but open, cracked, we hear children play.
You have a field here? school?
Yukhno: (Ukrainian speaks).
Unexual person No. 3: Kindergarten.
Bnessley: You are making drones outside kindergarten.
Yukhno: Yes, but we do not display our drones for children.
Birdzley: Yoshko says he entered into the drone manufacturing because he felt he had to do something when the war began.
Yukhno: We started delivery in Kyiv – food, medicine, what people need. We start with this, greater, largest and large.
Bnessley: He used to be Parista. It seems that everyone here had another presence before the comprehensive invasion.
Christina Pashinko: I’m very new here. I am still training.
Birdzley: The thirty -year -old Kristina Pashinko (PH) has left her job recently, and she is companies to help companies appear higher on the Internet because she said that she wanted to do something important. Now it is welding wire to the circuit board. Thin of smoke rises from a welding stick.
Pashenko: Now I feel very enthusiastic and a little proud of myself, so I can do something useful.
Burzley: Pashinko says videos thanks to the soldiers on the front lines using their drones greatly. Ukraine’s ground forces commander that drones hit and destroyed 22 % Russian targets in February, when drones are at the forefront of the first person.
(Soundbite from the Archiving Registration)
The non -specific person No. 4: (Non -English language occurs).
(applause)
Berdzley: Vyriy celebrated one of the most successful drone makers in Ukraine, recently, with the first thousand drones with 100 % of drones with a media event. Oleksi Babenko says it is important to be self -sufficient.
Oleksii Babenko: Since the beginning of this war, every time Ukraine needs something, we need to ask him a lot of time. So only one way how we can remain strong. It is only all we do in Ukraine. So they are only Ukrainian soldiers, but only Ukrainian manufacturers.
Birdzley: Russia is two months from Ukraine to innovate drones, but it has a much greater production capacity. He calls it a technology race.
Oleksandr Kamyshin: Once you get a technique, another aspect tries to face this technology, then you have to find another solution, then the other side tries to face it. It is a permanent war of innovations and the war of technology.
(Soundbite from the drone bird)
Beardsley: Once again in the basement store of drones, dogs open their eyes wide and uncomfortable, as the team tests a drone in a metal cylindrical frame in the middle of the room that allows them to fly, wrap and face. Sasha Batashnik, thirty -three, was a dancer before the comprehensive invasion. He says he makes drones to help end this war on the best conditions that Ukraine can get.
Sasha Ptashnyk: (Through the translator translator) we must be more realistic. Of course, I would like to restore all our lands. But from the beginning, we exaggerate our ability, and we are fighting a very big enemy. We must be sober.
Berdzley: Ptashnyk says, most of them are observing, is that the largest ally of Ukraine, the United States, may abandon his country.
Oleh Halaidych: Originally, I’m a scientist.
Birdzley: The partial plane maker sat in part -time, Ole Halaic at his workplace. This world says with a doctorate in the study of stem cells that making drones may be faster and most influential to help Ukraine.
Halaidych: I think many people who come – like, from art, culture, science, feel this time for some different decisions.
Bnessley: The science is slow, as he says, and we need to do something to protect ourselves now.
Elianor Birdly, NPR News, KyIV.
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