**Russia‘s Unconventional Defense Against Ukraine‘s Fiber-Optic Drones: A Pair of Scissors**
In a surprising turn of events, Russian troops have found an effective way to defend against Ukraine’s advanced fiber-optic drones – a pair of scissors. Yes, you read that right! The scissors are able to cut the thin optical fibers used by the drones, rendering them useless.
Fiber-optic first-person-view (FPV) drones are extremely difficult to defeat as they send and receive signals via miles-long spools of optical fiber, which cannot be jammed like wireless FPVs. However, severing the optical fiber will cause the drone to lose its command signal and fall from the air. Russian soldiers have been able to utilize this knowledge to their advantage.
**The “Scissor Defense”**
According to a video obtained on Saturday, Russian troops were able to detect incoming Ukrainian drones and then quickly find and cut the drone’s optical fiber using surgical scissors. The drone lost its command signal and eventually exploded a short distance away. While this method may seem unconventional, it has proven effective in certain circumstances.
However, as analyst David Kirichenko points out, deploying scissors on a large scale will be difficult for the Russians. “Scissors are an effective defense against fiber-optic drones – but only in the most extraordinary circumstances,” he noted.
**The Escalating War**
Both Russia and Ukraine are investing heavily in developing more fiber-optic FPVs, which are several times more expensive than their wireless counterparts. The escalating war has led to a new era of caution on both sides, with armored vehicles and infantry hiding indoors or underground when not actively attacking or defending.
**Active Defenses Against Fiber-Optic Drones**
The only scalable active defenses against fiber-optic drones are shooting them down right before they strike, usually with shotguns. However, this is a high-risk approach as missing the target could allow the drone to strike its intended target.
To combat this challenge, both Russia and Ukraine are trying to stop fiber-optic FPVs “left of the boom,” meaning detecting the optical fibers left over from earlier attacks and tracing them back to the drone operators. They then bombard the operators with drones or artillery.
**Ukraine’s Counterattack**
The Ukrainians have taken a different approach, targeting factories that produce Russia’s fiber-optic drones. In March, Ukrainian forces struck a hidden drone manufacturing facility in Obukhovo, while in April, they attacked a factory in Yelabuga and on April 4, a dozen attack drones motored into Russia to strike a factory producing fiber-optic cables.
**The Battle for Supremacy**
As the war grinds on, both sides are racing to outdo each other in developing advanced technologies. The battle for supremacy has never been more intense, with each side seeking to gain an edge over their opponent.
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