Ukrainian drones, similar to the Russian Lancet UAVs, have passed the first tests and are on their way to the first combat tests, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Digital Transformation Mykhailo Fedorov announced on the YouTube channel of the Diya portal. Digitization, reports Ukrainian Pravda.

Drones from various companies have been tested in recent days, and two of the four drones have successfully passed the test.

Fedorov noted that in the next few months it will be possible to organize the monthly production of about 100 such drones.

The Lancet offers a longer strike range, operating at a distance of 30-40 km, while the First-Person View drones operate at a distance of 10-20 km.

The Lancet drone has another advantage: it can operate during the day, while larger quadcopters can only operate under the cover of night.

Such UAVs are controlled via a video channel, which allows for guidance and movement correction when hitting a target.

In addition, such drones have a function that allows them to fix the target in the last 300-500 meters before hitting it, without direct communication with the drone.

“This is a high-tech product, so we couldn’t launch it right away, because we had to launch the market… and now we have the result,” the minister explained.

“There will be 2-3 competing products on the market, and in a year there will be dozens of such companies,” Fedorov added.

The next stage is combat tests.

In early February, the Kyiv Independent reported that “in the coming weeks” Ukraine will sign contracts for the production of drones similar to the Russian Lancet UAVs with a range of 40 km.

The production of drones in Ukraine increased significantly during 2023. In total, more than 200 Ukrainian companies are involved in the UAV sector, assembling ready-made vehicles or supplying products and services for the drone industry.

Lancet is a kamikaze drone with a range of 40 kilometers manufactured by ZALA Aero Group, a subsidiary of the Russian arms giant Kalashnikov.