Posted on 08/25/2025 10:53:18 AM PDT by marcusmaximus
Ukrainians are hunting down Russian drones armed with nothing more than shotguns and rifles while dangling out of prop lanes as part of a low-tech solution to Moscow’s high-tech aerial assassins.
Although Kyiv has some of the West’s most advanced air-defense systems, including US-made Patriot missiles and F-16 jets, the nation has been forced to deploy such unconventional tactics to counter Russia’s ever-escalating drone bombardments because of the sheer number of devices being deployed.
Pilots and gunners in Ukraine’s 11th Army Aviation Brigade have been tapped to take the Soviet-era Yak-52 prop planes to the skies, with the two-person aircraft shooting down 120 drones this past year with only shotguns and rifles, the Wall Street Journal reported.
“There is such great new technology now, yet I am still hanging out of the cockpit shooting at drones with a shotgun,” said an auto mechanic-turned gunner who has shot down more than 60 Russian UAVs.
The tactics of the 11th bring back aerial warfare to its World War I days, where marksmen had to lean out of their cockpits with a gun to take out the enemy fighters.
The Yak-52 is so basic that it has no radar, with the pilots only guided by radio before having to rely on their own eyes to spot the Russian drones soaring over the border.
The prop planes fly within 200 to 300 feet of the drone before the gunner opens his plane’s canopy to fire.
(Excerpt) Read more at nypost.com ...
Shotguns are good on drones. Any slight damage to a rotor neutralizes that type. A goose gun would be just the thing.
Why not string tear-away nets between other drones? Or shoot a variant of silly string from a defensive drone?
Just tangle them up.
Shooting down drones from the back of an airplane? I think people would pay to do that.
So, do they provide the gun and the ammo, too, or do you have bring your own?
NOTHING WOULD BE AS EFFECTIVE AS THE P-51 MUSTANG FOR THIS ROLE.
Why waste jet fuel?
Hopefully some new longer range goose loads will come out of this practice.
Which Atlanticist or EU NGO pays you?
Twinkle Toes could do some wing walking himself.
200 to 300 feet
Fat chance at that range.
The future of war, prop planes and shotguns will make Aircraft Carriers obsolete.
https://www.ammoland.com/2025/05/tungsten-super-shot-could-be-anti-drone-shotgun-ammo/
https://www.rem870.com/2013/01/09/exotic-12-gauge-ammo-review-part-1/
:)
“Wouldn’t it be easier for these slope heads to just make peace? But they enjoy war.”
Ain’t no profit in that, besides who will win the ballgame? Someone HAS to WIN. A tie is not allowed, it always goes into overtime and more innings are played...
Yes 3 inch 12 or 10 gauge goose shot #2 or BB work well in taking down UAV’s
And her grandmothers used to be Abbie to knock them down by throwing potatoes!
The drone sophistication is increasing.
It was a jar of pickled tomatoes at a drone hovering at her balcony, and they think it was a burglar’s drone checking to see which apartments were empty from people evacuating.
Seems like they could get some super duty props and just chop the drones up
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