ZIRKA Interceptor, Based on the Nemesis Brigade’s Experience, Unveiled in Ukraine

ZIRKA, a new interceptor drone designed to combat enemy drones, was first presented in Ukraine.

The new system was developed with investment support and expertise from Vyriy Industries, the company shared with Militarnyi.

NOCTIS developed the interceptor. The engineers based their system on real combat experience, involving military specialists, including personnel from the Darknode anti-drone battalion of the 412th Nemesis Unmanned Systems Brigade.

The platform combines systems for automatic detection, tracking, and guidance of aerial targets.

According to published technical specifications, the ZIRKA interceptor’s speed exceeds 340 km/h. The aircraft’s operational flight altitude reaches up to 6 km.

The stated range of the unmanned strike system is 30 km. The aircraft can remain airborne and perform combat missions for up to 20 minutes.

The cost of a single ZIRKA interceptor is up to $2,000. The manufacturers note that this is the lowest price among similar systems equipped with automatic detection and guidance systems.

A team of engineers and programmers with practical experience in countering aerial threats worked on the project. In this process, NOCTIS is responsible for interception technologies, software, and automation.

Vyriy Industries supports the development of this project as an investor and partner in scaling up production. At the same time, NOCTIS independently handles the product’s development, sales, implementation, and technical support.

“We know what a properly scaled defense company looks like. That’s why we’re investing and sharing our expertise—because the Ukrainian market needs more strong teams. The more such teams and high-quality products there are, the better our chances of winning this technology race,” Oleksii Babenko, CEO of Vyriy Industries, shared.

The next stage of development will be the creation of an upgraded version called ZIRKA 2.0. The updated version will feature automatic deployment of the aerial interceptor into the target detection zone.

According to Oleksiy Komlichenko, Director of Development at NOCTIS, version 2.0 will feature enhanced thermal imaging optics for machine vision-based target detection at a range of 2 km. The algorithms for detection, communication, positioning, and automatic detonation of warheads will also be updated.