Interceptor Drones & The War in Ukraine – Affordable Air Defence & Russian Strategic Bombing

July 13, 2025, 3:01 pm

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One of the greatest challenges posed by Drones in Ukraine is their sheer availability. Ukraine’s long range drone strikes have repeatedly stressed and penetrated Russia’s air defence system, while Russia’s swarms of Shahed style one way attack drones have scaled and evolved into an ever more dangerous challenge for Ukraine.

Looking for affordable options to respond, we’ve seen sides that the powers may be betting that in In the rock-paper-scissors logic of weapon systems in Ukraine, it may well be that the best counter to Drones….is Drones.

Patreon:
https://www.patreon.com/c/PerunAU

Reading and Sourcing (partial):

June claims data for Ukrainian USF grouping
https://x.com/414magyarbirds/status/1941509622600434143

Reporting on Russian OWA drone production rates
https://www.pravda.com.ua/eng/news/2025/06/4/7515633/

CSIS – Drone Saturation: Russia’s Shahed Campaign
https://www.csis.org/analysis/drone-saturation-russias-shahed-campaign

CSIS – Calculating the Cost-Effectiveness of Russia’s Drone Strikes
https://www.csis.org/analysis/calculating-cost-effectiveness-russias-drone-strikes

UA strikes on Russian drone supply chain
https://kyivindependent.com/drone-attack-ignites-blaze-in-russias-chuvashia-republic-media-reports/

https://www.kyivpost.com/post/54204

https://en.defence-ua.com/news/ukraine_strikes_russian_producer_of_the_kometa_m_navigation_units_for_shahed_drones_glide_bombs_and_missiles-14799.html

https://kyivindependent.com/ukraine-hits-russian-electronic-warfare-facility-making-shahed-iskander-components-general-staff-says-06-2025/

Diversion of APKWS from Ukraine
https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/zelenskyy-us-moved-20000-missiles-fight-drones-ukraine/story?id=122662585

https://www.twz.com/news-features/counter-drone-weapons-diverted-from-ukraine-to-middle-east-amid-rising-tensions-hegseth-confirms

2023 reporting on Shahed supply
https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russia-has-received-hundreds-iranian-drones-attack-ukraine-white-house-2023-06-09/

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/feb/12/iran-uses-boats-state-airline-smuggle-drones-into-russia

Example Interceptor reporting

https://kyivindependent.com/ukraine-deploying-drone-interceptor-system-to-defend-kyiv-amid-surge-in-russian-attacks-06-2025/

https://www.forbes.com/sites/davidhambling/2024/09/16/russians-respond-to-drone-interceptors-with-camouflage-and-swearing/

Caveats & Comments:

All normal caveats and comments apply. In particular – I note that this material has been created for entertainment purposes and is not intended to be a complete examination of the topic and should not be relied upon to inform financial or other any other views and/or decisions.

Any content relating to the conduct, views, activities or any aspect of any person or character in this video is included for entertainment purposes and does not represent an assertion of fact on those matters or any matters in relation to that person or character.

Care has been taken in compiling data, quotes, and other inputs from various sources but errors can occur. Quotes and included data should be considered illustrative, not definitive and their veracity should not be relied on.

Timestamps:
00:00 — Opening Words
01:50 — What Am I Talking About?
04:14 — Interceptor Drones 101
05:02 — Evolution in Ukraine
17:15 — Russian Adoption
20:06 — the Shahed Threat
27:00 — the Interceptor Option
31:24 — Data and Claims
35:25 — How Could We See This Used?
41:13 — Why Does This Matter?
47:10 — Channel Update

Content Creator – Perun