Russia has developed a universal equipment kit that can convert virtually any domestically produced unmanned aerial vehicle for operations during a nuclear conflict or other large-scale emergencies. One of its intended roles is surveying territory and infrastructure after nuclear strikes.

Dmitry Kuzyakin, chief designer at the Center for Integrated Unmanned Solutions (TsKBR), told TASS that the technology is being developed under the Khrust program, which focuses on the use of unmanned systems in catastrophic scenarios.

TsKBR initially created a dedicated «Doomsday» drone system. That approach, however, proved difficult to scale because the Russian military and Emergency Situations Ministry units would have had to purchase a separate specialized complex and keep it in reserve for an emergency that might never occur.

The developers therefore changed the concept. Instead of relying on a standalone system, they created a compact add-on package compatible with Russian-made UAVs. It consists of a small electronic board and dedicated software.

According to Kuzyakin, the kit can adapt drones of very different classes for missions during a nuclear war, ranging from FPV aircraft to Geran, Molniya and Banderol UAVs. This would allow large numbers of existing unmanned systems to be rapidly converted for such tasks when required.

The Khrust program is not limited to the consequences of nuclear weapons use. It also covers major industrial accidents involving toxic releases, chemical and biological threats, and other emergencies of catastrophic scale.

The «Doomsday» drone is designed in particular for remote reconnaissance of terrain and infrastructure following nuclear strikes. Kuzyakin said both the UAV itself and its operational scenarios had already undergone laboratory and field testing in Zhukovsky, Moscow Region, and described the system as ready for use.

The TsKBR chief designer also said that no other country currently possesses comparable systems. He attributed the development not to any special focus on the nuclear threat, but to the broader expansion of Russia’s unmanned aircraft industry and its ability to work through a wide range of potential UAV applications.