Rebodron – Unwave has developed an EW UAV to counter Russian Mavics

The Ukrainian company Unwave has developed the Rebodron UAV with a built-in electronic warfare (EW) system.

A company representative shared this with a Militarnyi correspondent during the Unwave 3rd Anniversary Demo Day.

According to the developers, the drone is equipped with an integrated EW system that operates in the 2.4 GHz and 5.8 GHz ranges — the very frequencies used by most civilian quadcopters, including the DJI Mavic.

It’s a pre-production prototype developed at the request of a Ukrainian Defense Forces unit. Russian Mavics were causing trouble for the military, so they addressed the company with the idea of an EW UAV.

To jam the signal, specialists use two 50-watt transmitter modules, and the EW system itself is powered by its own battery. This allows the UAV’s power electronics and the EW equipment to be completely separated to avoid mutual interference. The Rebodron can remain airborne for up to 40 minutes — same as the EW system operating time.

Rebodron Operational Concept

The drone can operate in patrol mode or as a fixed aerial platform. Upon reaching a designated area, the EW carrier drone hovers in the air. The optical flow stabilization system it uses allows it to maintain its position to within 10 meters without a GPS signal.

During testing, the drone demonstrated its ability to effectively jam a DJI Mavic at distances up to 200 meters.

During one of the tests, the operator of the “enemy” quadcopter was located approximately 6 kilometers from the flight site and was using a signal booster, but Rebodron was still able to jam the communication channel.

Meanwhile, the developers note that the effective jamming range depends on many factors — the operator’s amplifier power, terrain conditions, and the distance to the control panel. According to them, the guaranteed jamming range is considered to be 50 meters, while practical tests have already confirmed 200 meters.

To increase effectiveness, the operator can turn the EW system on or off while in flight. This allows the drone to approach the target as discreetly as possible and activate jamming right next to the enemy drone.

Localization

Virtually all of the system’s key electronic components are manufactured by Ukrainian companies. These include the flight controller, power distribution boards, electronic speed controllers, EW modules, and their power supplies. Ukrainian manufacturers also assemble the rechargeable batteries.

The Unwave team developed the antennas for the system. Of the foreign-made components used in the UAV, the main ones are the motors and the camera.