Hunting Russian soldiers with Vampire drones, Ukrainian troops brace for new offensives on the southern front

Hunting Russian soldiers with Vampire drones, Ukrainian troops brace for new offensives on the southern front While Kyiv claims counteroffensive success, Russian troops continue to seep through an increasingly blurry front line as a crucial year of fighting looms. by Francis Farrell April 7, 2026 8:24 PM 16 min read A Ukrainian crew member of the 225th Assault Regiment on a Bradley infantry vehicle near the front line in Zaporizhzhia Oblast, on March 14, 2026. (Francis Farrell / The Kyiv Independent) War Prefer on Google by Francis Farrell Editor’s Note: In accordance with the security protocols of the Ukrainian military, soldiers featured in this story are identified by first name and call sign only. ZAPORIZHZHIA OBLAST – For tonight's clearing mission on the cold windy steppe of southern Ukraine, the munition of choice is the Spear. In a cramped dugout less than eight kilometers from Russian forces, Ukrainian soldiers prepare the bombs, taping wires and tail fins onto long tubes of black steel fitted with menacing iron spikes and filled with explosives. A rudimentary, Mad Max-style weapon custom conceived for the runaway drone war; nothing out of the ordinary for Ukraine in 2026. "Nothing would be left of us if these went off right now," drone pilot Oleksandr "Catcher" said with a dry smile. Catcher, together with navigator Edvard "Timon" and sapper Maksym "Staryi" form a Vampire heavy bomber crew of the 423rd Separate Unmanned Systems Battalion of the Ground Forces, better known as the Scythian Griffins. This night's shift is dedicated to targets in the village of Danylivka, where Russian soldiers have been holding out in basements for over a month. "Basically, we do everything so they never feel comfortable in any shelter;" said Catcher, "that's our main task now." After attaching the munition, the drone is ready to take off, but an alert makes the team retreat to cover, as a Russian fixed-wing drone has been detected in the air. With an analog detector in the d...