Ukrainian drone schools say that Western militaries have little to offer them when it comes to training drone operators to fight Russia. Western armies know war, tactics, and combat power, but Ukraine has significant experience in novel elements of modern drone warfare learned over years of hard fighting.
Drones of all kinds are used more in Russia’s war against Ukraine than in any previous conflict in history, and they have been central to Ukraine’s survival, accounting for a large share of attacks.
While drones are not new to Western militaries, they have never been used or adapted at this scale or speed. Facing an existential adapt-or-die situation, Ukraine is writing its own lessons.
Ukraine has a host of drone schools that have designed curricula to make the country’s operators as effective as possible. And officials at three of them told Business Insider that their lessons are only informed by Ukrainian experiences.
“As of today, we do not receive any particularly useful information from our allies regarding the use of drones,” other than training on any equipment that allies provide, one said.
Vitalii Pervak, CEO of another training school, Karlsson, Karas & Associates, said that said 100% of his school’s teachings come from feedback or information from soldiers who are in the field.
One example he gave was in stopping enemy drones: “All experience in striking down drones is based only on the experience of the Ukrainian Defense Forces.”
He said there isn’t time for theoretical tactics that may not work when needed most. “We are in a situation where we need to respond quickly to new drones and the tactics of their use by the enemy,” he said. “Accordingly, techniques are being tested in practice, and only those techniques that really work are being retained.”
A fast-changing battle
Another drone school, Dronarium, said the school’s training “is based on existing combat experience, which changes very rapidly.”
Because of that pace, instructors said Ukraine is often better positioned to share lessons than to receive them. “In this sense, at the moment it is rather us who can share valuable information with them, rather than our foreign partners sharing it with us,” Anastasia Sobova, Dronarium Academy’s chief business development officer, told BI.
Ukrainian soldiers have been receiving Western training throughout the war, with mixed feedback. Some has been well received, while other elements have been deemed irrelevant to the kind of fighting Ukraine faces now.
Ukraine’s troops say combat tactics can become out of date in a matter of only weeks; the drone war is no different.
Matt McCrann, CEO of the US arm of DroneShield, a company making counter-drone systems for the US and Europe, recently told Business Insider that the speed of battlefield changes has shifted weapon development cycles from months and years to weeks.
Things change so fast on the battlefield that the schools need to frequently rewrite their lessons, sometimes as fast as every other week.
These drone schools stay on top of changes by sending their instructors to the front, maintaining constant contact with program graduates and other soldiers who send updates from the battlefield, and testing new technology.
Viktor Taran, the CEO of the Kruk Drones UAV training center, said that his school’s graduates exchange messages with the school to share new information about what’s happening on the battlefield or get advice from teachers.
“Cadets go to the front line, type questions in those chats, or provide information about new enemy tactics.” The information they get from those on the front line goes into the teaching for the next groups.
Pervak said in his school, “We constantly update our instructors’ knowledge. Some instructors occasionally visit combat units of the UAV to see firsthand what has changed, what remains relevant, and what can be discarded.”
Many Western militaries, including the US, acknowledge they are behind on drone warfare and that their tactics need updating. It is an area where Ukraine is helping partner nations that have assisted it in its defense.
The West is learning
Western and NATO militaries are closely watching the war, concerned that Russia could threaten Europe and that drones would play a major role in any wider conflict. That worry has intensified efforts to learn from Ukraine’s experience, particularly in drone operations and counter-drone tactics. The Ukrainians are attempting to meet that demand for expertise.
Ukraine agreed to help Poland with drone warfare training and has helped train Norway’s drone operators.
Ukrainian military specialists traveled to Denmark to participate in counter-drone exercises. Copenhagen said in April it intended to send unarmed soldiers to Ukraine for drone warfare training, though it is unclear if that has taken place.
The UK says Ukraine has influenced its drone doctrine as well. Britain leads an international effort to train Ukrainian troops, known as Operation Interflex, and those Ukrainian soldiers often arrive with more real-world drone experience than their trainers.
Lt. Col. Ben Irwin-Clark, commanding officer of the 1st Battalion of the UK’s Irish Guards, told Business Insider that one surprise from the training was “how much we would learn.” His unit now trains in drone warfare and 3D printing drone parts based on Ukrainian lessons.
Pervak described sharing expertise as a way to repay allies for their support. “Not forgetting the fact that we are truly grateful for the remarkable support from our allies, it is time now to share our latest battlefield experience.”
Drones might not dominate a NATO war against Russia to the same extent they do in Ukraine — in part because Western militaries possess capabilities Ukraine lacks — but they are no longer viewed as a niche tool. Ukraine’s experience has led to a realization that this tech may very well be the future of warfare.
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