Ukraine Wins First Drone Vs. Drone Dogfight Against Russia, Opening A New Era Of Warfare

A video posted on Twitter by Ukrainian broadcaster and activist Serhiy Prytula is claimed to show a dogfight between Russian and Ukrainian drones, both DJI Mavic quadcopters. Prytula, who has been heavily involved in fundraising to supply Ukrainian forces with drones, says the Russian Mavic was destroyed in the encounter in which the two unarmed quads clashed rotors. Many are hailing this as the first known drone-on-drone dogfight in history. It will surely not be the last.

Prytula describes the encounter as a “WW1 style duel” and it is highly reminiscent of the earliest days of aerial warfare when flimsy biplanes from either side encountered each other and pilots armed with pistols and shotguns exchanged fire. Sometimes the pilots used their aircraft as weapons: in September 1914, Imperial Russian pilot Pyotr Nesterov rammed an Austro-Hungarian Albatross bomber, bringing it down.

Drones have been involved in air-to-air combat ever since they were first used in WW1, but usually as hapless targets. U.S. Firebee drones were credited with bringing down Vietnamese MiGs, but these were instances where the fighter crashed while attempting to line up a shot. In 2002 the U.S. tried arming MQ-1 Predators with Stinger missiles to defend against Iraqi jets, but these were not a success.

Drone on drone encounters are a novelty. Both sides in Ukraine are using thousands of Chinese-made quadcopters for reconnaissance, artillery direction and dropping grenades — much to the discomfort of the makers who say their drones should not be used in war. An enemy drone is an imminent threat, so taking radical action, even if it risks losing your own drone, is called for.

“I can’t say I am surprised, given how many drones are in the air at any given time and the absolute and immediate need to neutralize the adversary drone once it is identified,” Samuel Bendett, an expert on the Russian defense scene and adviser to both the CNA and CNAS, told me.

Bendett says that this may not in fact be the first drone on drone encounter, noting a piece in Ria Novosti which says, “There are also known cases of aerial ramming, a tactic used occasionally to bring down adversary quadrocopters.”

The article, describing Russian-backed DNR forces training on the use of consumer drones for military purposes, goes on to say, “Drone operators are not yet taught air ramming techniques due to a shortage of training drones. It’s not very effective.”

Bendett says that the phrasing – ‘not yet’ – suggests that air-to-air drone combat will be taught soon if this is not already happening. And no doubt the Ukrainians have their own plans to ensure that their drones come out on top in future encounters.

There are already a whole class of drones specifically designed to take out other drones, from Anduril’s AI-powered interceptor unveiled in 2019 to a locally developed Ukrainian design known as Fowler first seen this month. Most of the drones out there will still be consumer models, but there has been considerable work into how they can survive and fight effectively with a few modifications.

Delft University of Technology’s Micro Air Vehicle Lab runs an annual DroneClash competition in which teams battle it out using modified commercial drones. Strict safety rules means there are no firearms or explosives, and the drones typically use entangling devices, dart guns, paint balls, sprays and similar devices to disable the opposition – although some also work as aerial battering rams. Tactics are as important as technology, and fast and aggressive drone pilots tend to come out on top.

Meanwhile, Ukraine also faces a barrage of Shahed-136 kamikaze drones. The Ukrainian Air Force confirmed that it lost one of its Mig-29 jets while shooting down the drones; some video of the incident is claimed to show that the MiG was downed by the blast from one of the drones it was attacking. The Ukrainians say the pilot shot down five of the drones, but this is a poor exchange rate against Shahed-136 which may cost as little as $20k and are being supplied by the thousand.

Drone versus drone combat is now a reality and likely to escalate. (The U.S. Navy has been exploring dogfights between competing drone swarms for years). Whichever side can master it and field an effective force is likely to have a huge advantage in the months to come – while the rest of the world watches and learning.