Ukraine relies on Australian cardboard drones

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Ukraine has relied on drones since the beginning of the Russian offensive war. The army does not shy away from attacks on Russian territory. In December 2022, drones caused explosions at three Russian airports. Soldiers were killed and long-range bombers damaged.

As Australian media is now reporting, the Ukrainian armed forces are also using strange Australian-made drones in combat. Their peculiarity: they consist mainly of cardboard, glue and rubber bands.

Launch by hand or catapult

The manufacturer of the drones named “Corvo Precision Payload Delivery System (PPDS)” is Melbourne-based company Sypaq. The flying objects arrive in the Ukraine as a flat kit. “Then they are put together on the spot, as if they came from Ikea,” Ukraine’s ambassador to Australia Vasil Miroshnichenko, 42, was quoted as saying in a TV report by “7News Australia”. “They are already being used by Ukrainian soldiers for various missions, including deadly ones,” he added.

Reconnaissance missions, espionage, as a diversion or to deliver light goods: the drone is a real all-rounder and can perform the most diverse tasks. However, Sypaq emphasizes that the plane is actually intended for humanitarian purposes – such as delivering medicine, food or water. A radio message from “3AW” also states that the drone can also be used to locate missing persons.

Australia supplies 100 drones per month

The “PPDS” is launched manually or by catapult. It can travel up to 120 kilometers autonomously. The coordinates of the flight destination must be pre-programmed into the aircraft.

Australia delivers 100 of these drones to Ukraine every month. Australian Defense Minister Richard Marles, 55, spoke of “very cool technology” and said their own military was also looking into how the drones could be used.

Source: Blick