Ukraine deploys new jet-powered interceptor drone to counter Russian drones

Published Aug 21, 10:47 AM UTC

Ukraine's Defense Forces have deployed the Alexa Spatium, a jet-powered interceptor drone designed to counter fast, low-flying Russian attack drones, including the Geran-3, Geran-4, Geran-5, and Shahed-131. Developed by Ukrainian engineers, the drone measures 1.5 by 1.7 meters, launches from a mobile catapult, and uses a turbojet engine. It carries interchangeable warheads (fragmentation-blast, shaped-charge, thermobaric) and uses TV and infrared sensors for targeting. The system can return to its launch point if a mission fails. This deployment comes as Russia increases its use of jet-powered strike drones, with plans to raise their share to 50%. Ukraine has fielded other jet interceptors like SkyFall's JetKiller and Firebolt Engineering's Griffen, which achieved the first confirmed jet-on-jet drone interception in early July. The shift to turbojet designs addresses the limitations of earlier propeller-driven interceptors against faster Russian drones.