Ukrainian middle-strike capacity is growing and becoming very significant in the war.
Ukrainian "Middle-strike"-type kamikaze drones operate at distances of up to 250 km from the frontline. This is where Russian air defense positions, temporary deployment sites, logistics bases, air bases, repair facilities, supply depots, and other targets of interest are located.
Among the targets: Russian deployment sites, headquarters, repair bases, ships, energy facilities, warehouses, planes, helicopters, etc.
Ukrainian operators seem to be focusing most heavily on air defense - nearly half of the strikes target Russian radars, launchers, and other elements of the air defense system.
This prioritization may indicate a systematic effort by Ukraine's Armed Forces to weaken the occupiers' air defense in the operational depth. The weakening of air defense gradually creates conditions for an increasing number of Ukrainian strikes against other key facilities that have long been on the intelligence radar.
FP-2 and Rubaka drones appear most frequently in the videos released by Ukrainian units over the year, suggesting their widespread use against the enemy and a systematic scaling up of production of these drones for the AFU.
There is a noticeable trend toward increased use of the FP-2 in particular - over the past five months, more strikes have been carried out with these drones than with the Rubaka over the March 2025-March 2026 period.
In addition to operating in Russia's "middle rear," drones are often used directly on the frontline, attacking infantry concentrations, forward Russian positions, and positions of drone operators. If costs continue to decrease, middle-strike drone production scales up, and expertise in their use grows, it will become increasingly difficult for Russian forces to conduct offensive operations simply because it will be harder for them to safely deploy and concentrate forces and means.
Middle-strike drones can also be effective at the strategic level. Recently, there has been an increase in strikes against high-value systems, particularly the Iskander short-range ballistic missile system. In February and March 2026 alone, the AFU drones hit four positions of Iskander launchers, a record number since the start of the full-scale war.
Source: Oboronka media
