Newsweek: Russia gets "nightmare" weapons upgrade

An upgraded Russian "suicide" drone could prove to be a powerful new tool in launching airstrikes against Ukraine.

"Production lines are in overdrive" for a new version of the KUB-BLA loitering munition, also known as the Zala KYB-UAV or the "Cube," according to a January 9 report from SOFREP that claims Russian military "higher-ups are buzzing," Newsweek reports.

SOFREP reported that the upgrades are as if "the Russians have strapped a sledgehammer" to the "belly" of the drone, with a "beefed up" warhead transforming it "into a more formidable nightmare for the enemy."

The drone, manufactured by Russian arms company Kalashnikov Concern, features an enhanced warhead called OFBCh-2.5. The warhead is made from the explosive OKFOL, which is 1.7 times more powerful than TNT, according to the European Defence Review.

Although it is unclear when the new KUB-BLA will be used on the battlefield, units of the unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) have likely already been delivered to the Russian military, based on an interview that Kalashnikov Concern President Alan Lushnikov gave to state media outlet Russia-24 on Christmas Day.

"Tests have been successfully completed, and the first batch is being shipped to the customer right now, I think, at this very moment," Lushnikov reportedly said. "This is a serious step, because in fact it was a new product."

Newsweek reached out for comment to the Russian Ministry of Defense via email on Tuesday.

The initial version of KUB-BLA, introduced in 2019, already had some formidable features that included the ability to travel nearly silently for 30 minutes at a top speed of 130 kilometres per hour, or just under 81 mph.

However, the original KUB-BLA had been limited by what was a relatively small warhead and was "used less often" than other Russian drones in its class, such as the Lancet, according to Defense Express.

The upgraded version will likely provide a far more powerful punch against targets in Ukraine, which has been inundated by repeated Russian drone and missile attacks since late December.

In October, Russia reportedly unleashed a new "Izdeliye-53" version of Lancet drones that includes an "automatic guidance system that can distinguish types of targets and increase strike success rates," according to the Institute for the Study of War (ISW), a U.S.-based think tank.

Despite the guidance system update, the Izdeliye-53s still lack a warhead powerful enough to "significantly damage most critical military targets," ISW said. The new version of the KUB-BLA could be used to hit some of the targets impervious to the Lancet and other drones.

Iranian-designed "Shahed" drones are the most well-known of the suicide, or "kamikaze," UAVs used by Russia during the war in Ukraine. However, the Shahed drones have frequently failed to reach their targets, often being destroyed by Ukrainian air defences with relative ease.

In recent months, Russia has been working to change air attack strategy to make it more difficult for Ukraine to intercept the drones, as well as making extensive domestic upgrades to its drone fleet.