Drone arms race transforms war in Ukraine, with U.S. now learning lessons | 60 Minutes
In a Nutshell
Drones have revolutionized Ukraine's war, inflicting 80% of casualties in a 10m-wide "kill zone," with innovations like fiber-optic-controlled drones, Sea Baby sea drones sinking 11 Russian vessels, and ground robots holding off attacks—boosting Ukraine's production to 4 million annually at under $1,000 per enemy kill. Ukraine's rapid one-week innovation cycle has created a drone arms race stalemate, drawing lessons for the US and NATO, which are adapting through training, innovation labs like The Forge, and integrating drones with traditional firepower to counter threats from Iran and Russia. Future breakthroughs include drone swarms, as the US learns from Ukraine's bloody experience amid recent Iranian drone attacks.
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Holly Williams on assignment for 60 Minutes. When America went to war with Iran last month, the US military faced an enemy using mass-produced drones to deadly effect. The same weapons have been used for years in Ukraine, some supplied by Iran to Russia. Unmanned and remotely controlled, drones have transformed the Ukrainian battlefield. They're estimated to inflict around 80% of combat casualties on both sides. The technology is revolutionary and evolving rapidly. The US military is learning lessons from Ukraine to adapt.
Forget everything you think you know about warfare.
The traditional front line in Ukraine has expanded to a roughly 10m wide strip called the kill zone. Anyone who sets foot there can be spotted by a drone operator and hunted down. This was a narrow escape for some Ukrainian soldiers. They call these Frankenstein tanks, retrofitted with cages and mesh to deflect drone strikes. Netting covers roads close to the front, designed to catch drones before they hit their target. To evade interference from electronic jammers, both militaries launch drones attached to miles-long spools of fiber optic wire, leaving behind a digital spider web.
But the drones are not just in the air.
Continuously innovating. >> Yes, for sure.
Beside a frozen lake, Ukraine's security service showed one of their most treasured weapons. It looks like a fishing boat with an outboard motor. It's a sea drone developed in Ukraine called Sea Baby. The operator's identity is protected because he's a target for Russian assassination.
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