Ukraine evacuates wounded soldier from front line by aerial drone for the first time
Ukraine's 92nd and 30th brigades and drone maker Gurzuf Defence used a Heavy Shot Ayudag-6 heavy-lift hexacopter to evacuate a wounded soldier from a front-line position, in what they called a first-of-its-kind mission. His life is no longer in danger.
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Ukrainian forces said on October 19 that they had carried out what they described as the first evacuation of a wounded soldier from a front-line position by aerial drone, the Kyiv Independent and Ukrainska Pravda reported.
How the mission worked
The operation involved the unmanned ground systems company of Ukraine's 92nd Separate Assault Brigade, the 30th Separate Mechanised Brigade, the 10th Army Corps and Ukrainian drone maker Gurzuf Defence. The military did not disclose the date of the operation or the section of the front where it took place.
According to the Kyiv Independent, the wounded soldier from the 30th Brigade had spent nearly 500 days at a front-line position, with fellow soldiers delivering food, water, ammunition and medicine by drone. After he was seriously injured, heavy Russian drone activity and mined terrain meant that reaching him on foot or with a ground robotic vehicle would have put the rescue team at risk.
The troops used a Heavy Shot Ayudag-6 heavy-lift hexacopter. They first delivered special equipment with carabiners, then sent the drone fitted with a winch, and the soldier, guided remotely, secured himself to the evacuation system. The drone carried him to a safer position, from where he was taken on to hospital. The Kyiv Independent said the mission lasted 1 hour and 14 minutes.
На Куп’янському напрямку Харківщини пораненого військового Костянтина евакуювали за допомогою важкого гексакоптера «Аюдаг 6». Попередні спроби евакуації, зокрема наземним роботизованим комплексом, не вдалися через дії російських військових. Для місії інженери української компанії
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Украин улс түүхэнд анх удаа фронтын шугамаас шархадсан цэргийг агаарын дроноор нүүлгэн шилжүүллээ.
Read more on XThe soldier's condition
The 30th Brigade said the soldier is now receiving treatment and rehabilitation and his life is no longer in danger. A 92nd Brigade programmer involved in preparing the operation called it "a historic event", while Gurzuf Defence co-founder Pavlo Feldblium warned that aerial evacuation should not be treated as routine because of the risks to the wounded during flight, and that each mission must be planned individually.
Sources: Kyiv Independent, Ukrainska Pravda
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