Ukraine is building an advanced army of drones. For now, pilots improvise
The Ukrainian government wants to spend more than $1 billion to build an army of drones LUHANSK REGION, Ukraine -- Flying above enemy lines, a Ukrainian reconnaissance drone sends a clear image back to soldiers hiding in a basement a few kilometers away: A Russian armored vehicle is idling along a key logistics route, looking like easy prey in the artillery-scarred green landscape. Then, in a flash, the image disappears, and the drone operator’s screen is replaced by a jumble of black and white pixels. “Snow,” says a calm commander known by the battlefield name Giocondo, who allowed The Associated Press to follow him and his unit of drone pilots on condition of anonymity to protect their identities. High-tech warfare cuts two ways, and the Russians use electronic beams to disable the drone's signals. Seconds later, the drone pilot switches to a frequency the Russians cannot easily exploit. The bird’s-eye image of the armored vehicle reappears, and a second drone – this one laden wi...