A gunner-operator from a tank unit of Russia’s 51st Guards Combined Arms Army, which operates in support of the «Center» grouping in the special military operation zone, told Russian journalists that Ukrainian forces have recently changed their tactics for using drones in the Krasnoarmeysk (Pokrovsk) direction.

According to the serviceman, cited by RIA Novosti, Ukrainian drone operators were forced to modify their attack methods after previous tactics led to the majority of their drones being shot down by Russian troops. He explained that Ukrainian forces are now attempting to drop munitions from heavy multirotor drones, known as «Baba Yaga,» without hovering over their targets as they used to.

The gunner described the new approach: instead of pausing midair to release their payload, the drones now dive toward the target, drop their bombs in motion, and immediately gain altitude to retreat. He added that the shift in tactics was clearly a response to Russia’s increasingly effective air defenses, which had made older methods too risky and ineffective.

Earlier, Russia’s Ministry of Defense reported that air defense units had intercepted and destroyed forty-two Ukrainian fixed-wing drones during the night over several Russian regions. According to the ministry, the unmanned aircraft were detected and shot down by on-duty air defense systems as they attempted to strike targets inside the country.