Under a Drone-Swarmed Sky: Surviving in Eastern Ukraine
Even miles from the front line, anything that moves in eastern Ukraine is a target.
That’s because as Russia’s summer offensive gains momentum, it is increasingly relying on drones of all kinds to gain control over Ukraine’s territory.
Under attack by drones, Ukrainian soldiers are struggling to maintain supply lines around the towns of Kostiantynivka, Pokrovsk and Kupiansk. There is greater peril for civilians remaining in their homes, and for the humanitarian groups trying to evacuate them. Some Russian drones strike at ranges up to 24 miles.
Senior Lt. Yevhen Alkhimov, a spokesman for the 28th Separate Mechanized Brigade, said movement to and from positions now posed the greatest risk for his soldiers. Nightfall brought no safety because more Russian drones had thermal imaging cameras. Once at the actual bunkers and trenches on the front, “it is usually possible to work,” he said.
The combination of drone strikes with aerial bombardments is devastating, soldiers say.
When the drones arrive, if there is greenery, it is easier for the troops to hide and then reach their positions, they say. If there is nowhere to hide, it’s very hard to move.
Many elderly and disabled civilians still live in these areas. Until they lose access to food and water, it is hard to persuade them to leave their homes, humanitarian workers say.
In Kupiansk, around 1,000 residents remain, according to government figures. Their homes are at constant risk from artillery, aerial bombs and drones, said Liana Shcherbyna, head of the Proliska Humanitarian Center in the Kharkiv region, which helps evacuate civilians.
“Almost every day, there are civilian casualties,” she said.
In May, during one evacuation mission in Kupiansk, her team had to order people to lie down as drones were heard flying overhead.
Despite repeated attacks near her home in Kupiansk, 86-year-old Vira Shapka, a composer and member of the National Union of Artists of Ukraine, refused to depart when rescue teams returned in May.
Although a large part of the population has been evacuated from areas close to the fighting, “a certain number of people still remain due to various circumstances, from reluctance to leave their homes to physical or psychological reasons,” Ms. Shcherbyna said.
On the roads, evacuation teams report increased danger for their vehicles because of reconnaissance and exploding first-person-view drones. Ukraine lacks sufficient countermeasures.
And so in Kupiansk, humanitarian vehicles rarely stop while traveling, to avoid becoming targets. When delivering aid, they use electronic devices to jam the signals of exploding drones, though these do not always work.
Pastor Oleg, a resident of the town of Vuhledar, has been helping his parish withstand the war since Russia invaded in February 2022. He brings food, drinking water, gas and hygiene products to those who remain in the area while also helping evacuate whoever wishes to go. He did not want his surname published because of fears for his safety.
He works as close as possible to the Russian lines, equipped with an armored car and an anti-drone system.
To combat the drones, the authorities are installing long poles to stretch nets above frequently used roads, offering some protection.
“The greatest threat is dying alongside the evacuees, either while moving or while picking them up,” Ms. Shcherbyna said, adding: “I believe people need to evacuate now, before the situation becomes critical and evacuation becomes nearly impossible.”
Elsewhere in Ukraine, air defense systems intercept large, long-range, Iranian-designed Shahed drones that Russia fires by the dozens or hundreds every day.
But near the front lines, deploying expensive, Western-provided air defense systems like Patriot would risk their destruction.
So soldiers like those from the 59th Assault Brigade, rely on less effective, Soviet-era weapons like the ZU-23, a towed heavy machine gun.
To avoid detection by drones, soldiers on the front conceal their weapons under camouflage nets and dig trenches. Just before firing, they pull back the concealing tarps and camouflage nets. In this way the positions are visible only when weapons are fired.
Drones have made the war more brutal, with mounting casualties.
Recently, soldiers from the First Presidential Brigade were targeted with an exploding first-person-view drone while delivering supplies. The drone missed but struck just 50 yards from their vehicle. They suspect it was a fiber-optic drone, controlled via a threadlike cable, because their vehicle had a jamming system on board.
The next morning, during an evacuation of the wounded at 5 a.m., their armored car was hit directly.
“Our vehicle burned,” said Pavlo Yurov, a soldier with the brigade’s press service.
Everyone inside survived. “All fighters disembarked and ran to the dugout, which was also under mortar and drone attack,” he said.
After another vehicle arrived, they evacuated.
As the summer offensive continues, Russian troops inch closer to eastern cities day by day. Ukrainian soldiers and civilians in the expanding zone at risk from drones now cling to one hope: survival.
Evelina Riabenko contributed reporting from Kyiv, Ukraine.
Tyler Hicks is a senior photographer for The Times. In 2014, he won the Pulitzer Prize for Breaking News Photography for his coverage of the Westgate Mall massacre in Nairobi, Kenya.
Maria Varenikova covers Ukraine and its war with Russia.
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