Unmanned Systems Forces have formed a unit to shoot down attack drones

The Unmanned Systems Forces (USF) has formed a Darknode unit to intercept attack drones and announced a recruitment drive.

The statement was published on the official website of the Unmanned Systems Forces.

According to the unit, both already formed military teams and volunteers ready to mobilize and sign a contract can join.

In March 2025, it was reported that the operators of the Darknode unit of the 412th NEMESIS Regiment had already destroyed more than 10 enemy Shahed-136/131 drones, having used a device whose name and type were not disclosed. It is likely that the unit will now be completely re-profiled to perform air defense functions.

The USF clarified that the product costs about $5,000, while the cost of enemy kamikaze drones is more than $150,000.

“The Unmanned Systems Forces continue to implement innovative solutions that increase the effectiveness of the Ukrainian Defense Forces to save the lives of Ukrainians,” the statement said.

The unit is likely to use high-speed interceptor drones of airplane or quadcopter type.

The use of such drones by the Unmanned Systems Forces against Russian Shahed was shown in early February by the PRESSING YouTube channel, but the drone itself was not demonstrated at the time.

In early April 2025, a drone for the interception of Russian Shaheds was presented to a Belgian delegation, primarily to Belgian Prime Minister Bart de Vever.

According to the developers, the drone is actively used to intercept Russian Shaheds and has destroyed more than 20 drones of this type over the past two months. It can also be used against smaller targets, including reconnaissance drones flying over the territory of Ukraine.

Although detailed tactical and technical specifications remain unknown, the developers reported that the drone’s maximum speed is 200 km/h and its maximum altitude is 5 km.

Later, Ukraine’s Minister for Strategic Industries Herman Smetanin said that the Ukrainian defense industry had already developed several interceptors for Russian Shahed-type strike drones.

One of the developments, which is based on a drone, was successfully tested over the territory of the Kyiv region for a month. After successful tests, it was decided to scale the project to other regions.