The New York Times on effective use of drones by Azerbaijan in Second Karabakh War

All wars have their iconic weapons, from the AK-47 to the I.E.D. In Ukraine, it’s the drone. A vast number and variety of drones — unmanned aerial vehicles — have been used on both sides of the war, including large military-grade machines and smaller consumer models. 

Drones have been used to pick targets for artillery fire and adjust the accuracy of those strikes. A wide range of drones has helped the Ukrainian Army punch above its weight on the battlefield, and the footage of attacks against ships and troops, tanks and helicopters has given Ukraine an easily shareable stream of videos for the global information war, The New York Times reports.

Perhaps the closest conflict to the war in Ukraine in terms of drone use was the clash between Azerbaijan and Armenia in the Karabakh region in autumn 2020, where Azerbaijani drones destroyed hundreds of Armenian tanks, munitions and armoured vehicles. Azerbaijan’s Ministry of Defence not only used its drone fleet effectively on the battlefield; it also frequently posted videos of the attacks on its website.

The lessons from all these conflicts? They can be used in creative ways that surprise the enemy. Civilian and military drones all have a place in modern warfare. The Times reported this month on a crowdfunding campaign by the Ukrainian government that solicited donations of commercial drones and sought people with skills to fly them.

Drone warfare is pushing human pilots to the side. Some next-generation military drones rely on artificial intelligence to circle over an area, pick out enemy units and destroy them. In the coming years, drone technology will improve, and the cost of drones will decline. As they do, the frightening truth is that troops and civilians in future conflicts will find fewer and fewer places to hide from the gaze of both man and machine.