Array
Russian attacks on Ukrainian cities, including the capital Kyiv, left at least four people dead on Monday.
The attacks were carried out by what are called Shahed drones — also known as suicide or kamikaze drones.
The drone attacks do not change the war itself, but their use and how Russia came to have them is a topic of international interest.What are these ’suicide drones‘?
Unlike predator drones that can be remote-controlled and drop ammunition loads and fly off, the Shahed drones are programmed with coordinates ahead of time and rely on GPS to hit their targets.
Farzin Nadimi is an associate fellow with The Washington Institute who specializes in the security and defense affairs of Iran. Nadimi said these drones are „fairly accurate,“ decently resistant to signal jamming, and difficult to detect and track using radar, but they are not without weaknesses.
„I think the most vulnerable aspect of these drones is it’s a very loud noise that they make,“ Nadimi said.
Another disadvantage of the Shahed drones is their speed, said Ret. Marine Col. Mark Cancian, who now serves as a senior adviser at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.
