MOSCOW, July 6. /TASS/. The Russian armed forces employed state-of-the-art electromagnetic weapons for the first time in the special military operation in Ukraine to stun enemy drones, a source in defense circles told TASS on Wednesday.
"The Russian Stupor electromagnetic systems were employed against Ukrainian drones for the first time in the Ukraine special operation," the source said.
The electromagnetic weapons demonstrated fairly high efficiency of their use and are easy to operate, the source added.
"By aiming at a target and simply pressing the button, the Stupor deadens the control signal between an operator and a drone, following which the Ukrainian UAV is neutralized and grounded at a required place. The need for these portable counter-drone systems became obvious in the wake of a large number of drones and various small copters used by the Ukrainian military," the source explained.
The source declined to specify where these systems were particularly used, noting, however, that they had been successfully employed in the west of the Donetsk People’s Republic.
TASS has no official comment on this information yet.
Previously, there were no official reports about the use of such man-portable counter-drone systems in Russia’s special military operation in Ukraine. The Russian Defense Ministry periodically reports eliminating Ukrainian UAVs by various surface-to-air missile systems, air defense weapons and also jamming stations.
Stupor counter-drone weapon
The Stupor man-portable counter-drone system was engineered by the Russian Defense Ministry’s Main Robotics R&D and Testing Center to fight drones, including copter-type aerial vehicles operating on the ground and on water surface within a direct visibility range. The weapon prototype was unveiled at the Army 2017 international arms show.
The counter-drone weapon emits electromagnetic impulses and is primarily designated to knock out the control channel of a drone that loses communications with an operator under the impact of electromagnetic radiation, causing it to lose flight control and crash. The Stupor operates at a range of 2 km in a 20-degree sector. The system can also suppress navigation and transmittance channels of drones, and their photo and video cameras in the optoelectronic band.