KYIV, Ukraine — At first, it was only a faint whine somewhere in the distance. Then the sound sharpened, swelled, and suddenly the drone was overhead, a high-pitched scream piercing the air as it flew past.
The aircraft was Sting, a Ukrainian interceptor drone purpose-built to hunt Russian Shahed-type attack drones. It tore over the ground-control station, an unassuming van loaded up with screens, before its pilot brought it around for a few more passes and landed it in the grass.
Business Insider observed the Sting in action during a rare visit to a training site at an undisclosed location near Kyiv last month.
Made by the Ukrainian company Wild Hornets, Sting is among the country’s best-known interceptors, credited with shooting down some 1,500 Russian Shahed-style drones in April alone.
The screaming sound is a testament to its high speeds; Sting can reach nearly 175 mph. Early designs envisioned a weapon faster than that; however, Wild Hornets realized speed isn’t everything and decided to dial it back to strengthen other characteristics.
Wild Hornets tested the first Sting prototype in late 2024 as Ukraine searched for solutions to strengthen its air defenses against worsening Russian drone attacks. By spring 2025, the interceptor had its first Shahed kill.
Sting’s profile changed heavily during the research and development phase before it went into mass production, a Wild Hornets spokesperson told Business Insider. They spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive industry developments.
Engineers initially focused on speed; Sting had a different shape and could reach over 200 mph — significantly faster than Russia’s propeller-driven Geran-2 drone (a top speed of 72 mph) and roughly as fast as its first jet-powered variant, the Geran-3.
However, after combat testing and consultations with the Ukrainian military, Wild Hornets discovered that the higher speeds compromised Sting’s loitering time, and that wasn’t necessarily the right solution.
The military said “speed is not always the main thing. Time in the air is also important,” the Wild Hornets spokesperson recalled in an interview. The lower speeds also increase Sting’s reliability in combat and make it easier to prepare for missions.
Even with that trade-off, speed remains what separates Sting from more common battlefield drones. And there are, of course, moments where high speeds are optimal, such as when chasing Russian jet-powered drones.
Nazar, a Wild Hornets instructor who goes by his call sign for security reasons, told Business Insider that the biggest difference between an interceptor drone and a common first-person-view (FPV) drone is how fast the former moves.
That speed changes the way pilots have to fly the interceptor, but the training pipeline can be short. Nazar said pilots who already know how to fly an FPV drone — a skill that can take up to a month to learn and effectively apply in combat— can learn to use Sting in about a week. A quick reaction time helps, he said.
The current Sting iteration can remain airborne for more than 20 minutes, depending on speed, altitude, and pilot skill. The drone can reach an altitude of roughly 23,000 feet, though it performs better closer to 16,000 feet.
One Sting unit costs less than $2,000 — a fraction of the price tag of a Shahed, usually worth tens of thousands of dollars, and significantly less expensive than an interceptor missile.
Ukrainian military feedback is informing other Sting upgrades; for instance, Wild Hornets developed variants with different cameras for various light conditions, as well as for daytime and nighttime operations.
Russia has also added cameras to its Shaheds for greater situational awareness, along with other modifications in recent months to make the drones more maneuverable — and survivable — when pursued by Ukrainian interceptors.
The Wild Hornets spokesperson said Sting has become more effective over time. Interception rate ultimately depends on experience and weather, but some teams can manage above 90%.
In March, the company announced a new remote-control technology, “Hornet Vision,” that allows interceptor operators to pilot Sting hundreds of miles from the launch point in safe locations, away from Russian targeting, in a major breakthrough for Ukrainian air defense.
The Wild Hornets spokesperson said this development is significant. “It allows experienced pilots — the best pilots — to control a larger number of weapons systems, to use a greater number of drones, over longer distances,” they said.
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