Russia is using small FPV drones controlled via fiber optic cables to overcome Ukrainian anti-drone defenses and strike high-voltage electrical substations in Sumy region, an open-source analysis shows. Footage of the attacks, posted on Russian social media, has been verified by the London-based Center for Information Resilience (CIR) and confirmed by "Reuters".
Since the beginning of the war, Russia has systematically attacked Ukrainian power infrastructure, and Kiev has protected key transformers with concrete sarcophagi and anti-drone nets. However, optical FPV drones cannot be silenced by electronic warfare systems unless their cable is cut.
According to CIR investigator Joshua Scriven, Russian forces first destroy the protective grid with one drone, then send a second through the resulting hole. Since May, they have been using this tactic to reach the autotransformers - the most important element of the substations - through ventilation holes.
According to CIR, four strikes on well-protected 330 kV substations and at least four more on smaller 110 kV substations have been confirmed. The affected sites are located 16-26 kilometers from the front line, which, according to the DeepState mapping project, indicates the increased range of these drones.
The head of the Kiev Center for Energy Research, Alexander Kharchenko, points out that destroying an autotransformer, the cost of which in a 330 kV substation reaches about $ 3.5 million, damages the entire transformer block. At the same time, an optical FPV drone can cost only about $ 2,000.
"I think the reason why they started using them is because of these protective sarcophagi. They protect against missiles and shaheeds (heavy-lift drones)," said Scriven.
"The cost-benefit analysis there is staggering."
According to Scriven, the attacks are part of a broader Russian strategy to isolate Ukrainian regions from the national electricity grid, followed by power outages through strikes on local power plants.
The Sumy region has been under heavy Russian shelling since the summer of 2024, following the Ukrainian offensive into Russian territory and the subsequent Russian offensive. On Wednesday, Digital Transformation Minister Mikhail Fedorov said the security situation in the region had worsened in June.
"Russia's goal is to terrorize people and make life in the border areas unbearable," he wrote.
The International Criminal Court has issued arrest warrants for senior Russian military commanders over strikes on Ukraine's power grid in 2022-2023. Moscow denies attacking civilian targets and says all its strikes are directed at military facilities.