Heavy AFU hexacopters are relatively easy targets for snipers because of their low speed and tendency to hover for extended periods. This makes it possible to engage the drones even at night, a sniper platoon commander from the 6th Guards Combined Arms Army, call sign Oko, told RIA Novosti.

Sniper teams maintain round-the-clock watch from positions prepared in advance. They use specialized optics for both daytime and nighttime operations, along with modern Russian-made rifles.

The heavy UAVs become particularly vulnerable when they stop moving and remain suspended in the air. Oko said snipers take advantage of these moments, using night-vision and thermal sights to hit the targets.

Over the past week, units of the 6th Guards Combined Arms Army within the Sever group of forces destroyed more than 15 heavy R-18 drones in the Kharkov direction.

Russian troops are also continuing combat operations in the Kharkov Region. Units of the Sever group are tightening the encirclement and destroying enemy formations trapped inside it.