Aerial drones with machine guns used in combat
The Ukrainians mounted machine guns onto aerial drones and used them in combat. (Reporting from Ukraine/YouTube)
The Ukrainians and the Russians have found novel ways to deal with not having constant air superiority. Without air cover, both sides need to rely on armor, artillery, and traditional tactics. However, with 21st-century technologies, unrestricted warfare methods are also being utilized. The Ukrainians recently mounted machine guns to octocopter drones and used these drones to conduct machine gun fire against advancing Russian infantry. The Ukrainians are still investigating adjustments and designs to address the physics of firing machine guns from aerial drones.
From YouTube Channel reporting Ukraine:
To combat this increased concentration of infantry, Ukrainians began experimenting with new variants of drone warfare. Ukrainians mounted their heavy octocopter drones with machine guns to strafe Russian infantry assaults and fire into the trenches from above. The operators of this drone also stated that Russians did not even try to shoot down these drones, likely in shock and understandable fear of this new tactic.
At the moment, the biggest issue that these drones deal with is the recoil. Some Ukrainians sources mentioned that certain drone teams are already developing and testing various stabilization systems. If the issue is fixed, the drones will become far deadlier than ever before.
Right now, Ukrainians are using two types of drones against the Russian infantry: grenade dropping drones, and kamikaze drones. Dropping grenades accurately is extremely difficult, especially if the infantry is moving, or if the infantry has electronic warfare kits that necessitate operating from a much higher altitude, further reducing the accuracy. The kamikaze drones, in turn, can only be used once.
The development of gun mounts, combined with thermal vision and machine aiming, will change the setting completely.
The balance of the video update, including a partial transcript of the video, can be viewed here.
