Ukrainian Baba Yaga drones now appear capable of launching guided munitions

Ukraine’s drone development is accelerating by the day. Nothing drives development, for better or worse, like conflict, and both sides are vying for an advantage in the drone space. This means rapid iterative development and large-scale proliferation that has major repercussions far beyond the front lines. The latest example is Ukraine equipping its large industrial quadcopter drones, nicknamed by the Russians “Baba Yagas” (a reference to the fierce old woman who eats children in Slavic folklore), with guided munitions. This would allow these drones to strike even the most battle-hardened armored vehicles as they move, with great precision, and to do so again and again deep behind enemy lines without having to maintain a steady position over their target.

Images of a Baba Yaga captured by Russian forces have emerged on Telegram today. They show the Baba Yaga adorned with largely intact antennas, as well as a very peculiar munition, featuring a seeker head that appears to be designed for laser guidance, although other possibilities also exist, including an electro-optical type. The weapon is marked BK-30F in Cyrillic and has what appears to be a relatively large fragmentation warhead section that occupies the middle of its body.

The exact type of weapon is unclear, but it could be an evolution of the 9K112 Kobra missile or one of its many iterations and clones, the latter of which has been developed by Ukraine in a large number of configurations.

The Kobra is a Soviet-designed weapon that originally used semi-automatic line-of-sight (SACLOS) guidance. Designed to be launched from the gun of a tank, the Kobra was guided to its target using an optical sight, similar to how the American TOW missile does its job. Later iterations of this basic missile design were used as the basis for tube-launched anti-tank guided missiles. The Stugna missile system widely deployed in Ukraine appears to be at least inspired by this design, as well as a number of others.

The fins on the “BK-30F” round also do not appear to be curved to fit the missile body, which is essential for launching via a tube or a tank’s main gun. This could just be the image. It could also be that these weapons are produced without the spring-loaded fins to save time and money, or that they are adapted from a non-tube-deployed variant. The smaller rear control fins are not visible in this image, although they may have broken off.

In any case, even if the ammunition recovered with the Baba Yaga is not directly derived from the weapons mentioned above, Ukraine is quite capable of manufacturing a guided munition like the one seen in the image.

Pairing weapons like these with Baba Yaga drones is a smart move. These unmanned craft aren’t cheap or disposable weapons like their first-person view (FPV) counterparts. They’re industrial-grade systems that are often used for agricultural and commercial applications. They cost tens of thousands of dollars each and can lift large payloads dozens of miles. So while increasing their lethality is always important, increasing their survivability is just as critical.

Even if not equipped with rocket engines and used only in freefall mode, guided munitions would allow Baba Yagas to engage targets at much higher altitudes and without having to hang directly above the target they are attacking. The drones can then continue to move throughout the engagement, which would be a great help in increasing survivability. The weapon shown in the photos that have emerged today, if indeed directly related to established anti-tank types, would be very capable in both an anti-tank and anti-personnel role, with far greater explosive power than the small drone-dropped bombs and warheads used on many FPV drones. We are talking about a true anti-tank or heavy anti-personnel capability here.

If the missile retains its rocket motor in this configuration and can be reliably ignited and guided after release, this could greatly increase the standoff distance at which the Baba Yaga could engage targets. The Kobra missile could hit targets up to about two miles away when fired from a tank. The Stugna-P has an even greater range. This would be considerably greater when fired from altitude, but even a range of a few kilometers would greatly increase the tactical flexibility of an armed Baba Yaga.

Laser designation would be via an electro-optical/infrared sensor turret with a laser system. These systems have become increasingly miniaturized and affordable for use on smaller drones, and are well within the Baba Yaga’s lifting capacity. Even an electro-optical seeker and closed-loop control capability are possible with the right communications link.

In terms of operational applications, the Baba Yaga is capable of venturing into Russian rear areas, miles away from the front lines, to hunt targets. This opens up a huge vulnerability for enemy forces. Russia is also acquiring this capability. The use of airborne repeaters/relays to extend the connectivity range of large and small drones is also something that the Baba Yaga is not only tasked with providing, but can also benefit greatly from.

By using a repeater, this large quadcopter can penetrate deeper into Russian-controlled territory, striking targets where the enemy is not as prepared to defend against such attacks. If you add laser-guided munitions to its weapons portfolio, that means it can take out targets with precision from several thousand feet in the air. At those altitudes, its line-of-sight connectivity with its operators would also be greatly expanded.

Overall, we are talking about a real synergy that goes beyond the simple acquisition of more precise munitions by these drones. Only the Ukrainian fixed-wing Bayraktar TB2 drones, which are much more complex and expensive, are capable of using guided munitions like these. They were widely used in the early stages of the war, but suffered heavy losses when Russian air defenses were deployed over large swathes of Ukraine.

#Ukraine:We present some recent exclusive images of the eyes of the Bayraktar TB2 drone in the hands of the Ukrainian army.

A 9K317 Buk-M2 TELAR, part of the infamous convoy, completely destroyed. pic.twitter.com/PUiWkeOPwm

— 🇫🇷 Tracking weapons in Ukraine (@UAWeapons) March 7, 2022

Using the range and payload of the Baby Yagas to deliver precision-guided munitions is certainly a new facet of drone warfare in Ukraine, but it is also a logical evolution. While these drones are not cheap, they do allow for these types of attacks behind enemy lines at an attractive price point. This is something that the much more capable and easier to detect and engage TB2s simply could not accomplish. As a result, we will likely see a rapid expansion of this capability in the near future.

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