• Ukraine's defense industry is boosting the production of fiber-optic drones.
• These drones are a major threat in combat because they're immune to electronic warfare defenses.
• Ukrainian drone makers say there was initial skepticism of this tech, but now it's in high demand.

Ukraine's expanding defense industry is now ramping up production of new fiber-optic drones that can be converted into unjammable flying bombs. They can evade electronic shields and deliver precision strikes.

These drones have emerged as a solution to electronic warfare, which Ukraine and Russia use to render enemy weapons ineffective. Electronic systems interference is a major element of the high-stakes technology race driving combat innovation.

Business Insider spoke with several people directly involved in Ukrainian efforts to scale up the fiber-optic drone production. Some said there was skepticism at first about how the tech would perform in practice, but these weapons are now in high demand. They're seen as an essential part of a rapidly evolving battlefield.

Fiber-optic drones are first-person-view drones that can carry a small explosive payload, but instead of relying on a radio frequency connection that's vulnerable to electronic signal jamming, these drones are equipped with spools of long, thin cables that offer them a stable connection over a range of several miles.

The fiber-optic cables maintain a reliable link between the drone and the operator, making them quite dangerous because they're resistant to traditional electronic warfare practices. They're difficult to defend against and provide high-quality video transmissions.

Russia introduced fiber-optic drones on the battlefield last year, and the technology became more prominent by the fall. The possibilities were clear, and it wasn't long before the Ukrainians started operating the drones in combat.

Ukrainian developers first started working on fiber-optic drone tech in 2023, Nataliia Kushnerska, a senior executive in Ukraine's defense industry, told BI.

"That year saw the creation of the first prototypes and initial testing conducted by the manufacturers themselves," said Kushnerska, the chief operating officer of Brave1, a Ukrainian government operation that facilitates innovation within the defense industry.

"Today, Ukrainian producers have already transitioned to serial production of these systems," she said.

Brave1 works with fiber-optic drone manufacturers, giving them support such as providing testing sites and organizing demonstrations. It also connects Ukrainian security and military forces with companies so they can place orders.

Kushnerska said dozens of teams across the country were working on fiber-optic drones now, and the number was only growing. She said some of the companies could produce thousands of these drones each month.

An essential part of a changing battlefield

Max, the CEO of the Kyiv-based company BattleBorn, which develops and makes fiber-optic drones, told BI he first heard about these drones this past spring but was skeptical about the tech because he didn't think it would be practical in combat.

Many of the Ukrainian industry figures BI spoke with requested anonymity because of the security situation in their country. BI verified their roles in the industry.

Volodymyr, cofounder of a Ukrainian drone-making company called Fold, said the military and the industry were suspicious of the fiber-optic drone technology. "At first, no one believed in this idea," he said in translated remarks shared with BI.

The big concerns were that environmental obstacles such as trees or buildings would cut the fiber-optic cables and that drones would be able to operate only along straight roads.

But as time went on, drone manufacturers began to realize the addition of fiber-optic cables would be a suitable modification to their drones, Volodymyr said. By mid-2024, it was clear they were a necessary addition to the modern battlefield.

"As it turned out, they were much more practical than expected," Max shared. Companies such as BattleBorn and Fold are turning up production and trying to improve their operations — and they aren't alone.

Oleksii, a representative of Warbirds of Ukraine, a Kyiv-based company, told BI it took a while for fiber-optic drones to become popular because there wasn't enough demand. Manufacturing and scaling up production also presented technical challenges.

But as electronic warfare tactics increasingly interfered with typical communication channels, a need for some sort of solution became apparent. Warbirds of Ukraine started developing fiber-optic drones in the fall, and now it can produce 700 systems a month.

Fiber-optic drones aren't without their hassles, though. Producing the thin cables is a complicated and technical process, and they're fragile, making them physically vulnerable to damage in a warfighting environment.

Manufacturers also have to leave room on their drones for the spools that carry the fiber-optic cables, reducing their explosive payload. Additionally, the drones are slower and less maneuverable than those that use radio communication.

But these weapons have the potential to be game changers.

Oleksii said that the fiber-optic drones "are essential because they remain operational in electronic warfare environments" and that "when used with the right technology, they can significantly improve the accuracy of strikes."

"This is one of the evolutionary steps in developing new approaches to counter electronic warfare systems," he added.

Fiber-optic drones are just one new area of focus for Ukraine's booming defense industry. The country is also producing homemade artillery, missiles, and other weapons to meet front-line demands.

• Fiber-optic and AI drones have come to prominence as countermeasures to jamming and electronic warfare.
• Ukraine's special drone unit Typhoon said it hasn't seen systematic application of these technologies.
• But once they become widespread, they'll change drone warfare because they're hard to beat.

Constant intense electronic warfare in Russia's war against Ukraine has led to the rise of drones that are resistant to signal jamming. It's still early days, but these things could be game changers, drone operators say.

These fiber-optic and artificial intelligence-driven drones are not yet being widely used, a special Ukrainian drone unit told Business Insider, but once they become as prolific as some other technologies, they'll completely change how drone warfare is fought.

The war in Ukraine has been defined by the use of uncrewed vehicles, the majority of which rely on radio frequencies to maintain a connection with their operators. In response, both sides have employed electronic warfare capabilities able to jam drones and seize control from the operators or cut video feeds, leaving pilots flying blind.

Operators needed a way around electronic warfare.

Ukraine first documented the Russians using fiber-optic drones last spring. They became more prominent in the fall. These systems are guided by a hardwire cable similar to a US-made anti-tank TOW missile. The cable maintains a connection between the operator and drone, ensuring the system can't be jammed.

At the time, it was unclear if fiber-optic drones would be widely adopted as the next evolution in drone warfare, but it was clear they had promise. Drone experts and top war watchers assessed that they'd have useful applications in some environments and situations but probably weren't a catch-all solution. The cables could get caught or cut, for example, and the systems would have shorter ranges.

The development indicated that both Ukraine and Russia would continue coming up with new solutions.

As of now, Ukraine's special drone unit Typhoon doesn't see a systematic application of fiber-optic drones or systems controlled by AI, another adaptation to electronic warfare that is highly sought after but still experimental.

"However," Typhoon told Business Insider, "if widely adopted, these technologies would fundamentally change drone warfare."

Typhoon is a newer National Guard of Ukraine drone unit. Unveiled last fall, Typhoon consists of engineers and operators specialized in uncrewed systems. Right now, Typhoon operates a diverse range of uncrewed aerial systems, mostly supplied by the National Guard and domestic innovation outfits. 

The unit's short-range reconnaissance drones, such as the first-person view DJI Mavic, are used for gathering intelligence, assessing targets, and guiding strikes. Its short-range strike drones are deployed for precision hits on enemy personnel, positions, and equipment, as well as against aerial targets.

Typhoon also operates bomber drones like HeavyShot and Vampire, which are mostly used at night because they're larger in size and easier to spot. Fixed-wing reconnaissance drones and strike drones are also often used for longer-range missions.

But the unit is also actively integrating emerging technologies, such as fiber-optic drones and "machine vision tracking with homing capabilities," which would help improve targeting. Each drone serves a specific purpose in missions, and part of Typhoon's mission is the training of operators for those specific skill sets. 

With fiber-optic and AI-driven drones, the challenges for front-line forces will be even greater.

Both of these systems are harder to take down than the regular radio frequency drones because they are invulnerable to electronic warfare. A drone flown by an autonomous terminal guidance system, once locked onto its target, would still maintain its flight path even if it's jammed, effectively making it a fire-and-forget weapon.

Fiber-optic drones are a less-expensive, lower-tech solution, keeping a hard connection so that operators can ignore any electronic warfare and continue to fly the drone towards its target. 

Typhoon said the options for destroying fiber-optic drones are relatively limited right now. Because they don't "rely on radio signals that can be detected by conventional electronic warfare systems," the unit said, "the only way to counter them is through timely visual detection and physical destruction."

Simply put, that means they have to see it and shoot it. The Ukrainians have deployed shotguns as a counter-drone tool. But they aren't always easy to detect, which means warfighters may have limited time to react for a kinetic kill.

These systems aren't seeing constant or consistent use just yet, but the Ukrainian forces have praised them for their accuracy and ease of use. Ukrainian and Western drone companies are now racing to churn them out.