Ukrainian Interceptor Drone Downs Jet-Powered Shahed for the First Time

During the Russian attack on the night of November 30, Ukrainian interceptor drones shot down several Russian Shahed jet-powered drones for the first time.

Volunteer Serhii Sternenko reported the incident and published a photo showing one of the interceptions.

“A bit of a historic achievement. Tonight, for the first time, our soldiers shot down several Shahed jets with Ukrainian-made Sting interceptor drones,” he shared.

The General Staff said Russia launched a total of 138 Geran-3 jet drones — a localized version of the Iranian Shahed-238. Most were successfully intercepted by Ukrainian air defenses.

The wreckage of these drones was first publicly documented in early June 2025. Later, Russian sources released footage of tests showing that the systems resemble the Shahed-238 jet drone but also feature certain differences.

In late June, the wreckage of a Geran-3 drone with the serial number U-36 was discovered. Given the reported total of 138 units, this suggests the drones are still produced on a small scale.

Geran-3/Shahed-238

In February 2025, the Defense Intelligence of Ukraine reported that Russia was establishing production of its own analogue of the Shahed-238 jet drone — the Geran-3 — equipped with a small Tolou-10/13 turbofan engine similar to the one used in the Iranian model.

According to intelligence assessments, this should provide a flight speed of 550-600 km/h and a range of about 2,500 km, figures similar to the Iranian versions.

The Shahed-238, on which the Geran-3 is based, is known to have a length of 3.5 meters, a wingspan of 3 meters, and a height of 0.5 meters. Its maximum takeoff weight is up to 370 kg (250 kg in some documents). The warhead weighs 50 kg.

Such specifications were believed to make the Geran-3/Shahed-238 difficult to counter with both mobile fire teams using small arms or cannon weapons and electrically powered interceptor drones.

However, operational experience has shown that when flying at maximum speed, the drones deplete their fuel quickly, resulting in a limited range.

Ukrainian forces have recorded the Geran-3’s actual cruising speed at roughly 300–350 km/h. The drones accelerate to maximum speed only on the final leg of their route or in areas where Russian intelligence has detected Ukrainian air defenses. This makes them accessible to Ukrainian interceptor drones.

More details about the Geran-3/Shahed-238 jets can be found in our special report, “The Jet-Powered Shahed: Not a Cheap Ersatz Cruise Missile and a New Threat to Ukraine.”