Ukrainian forces down rare Russian Merlin-VR surveillance drone

Operators of the Phoenix Border Guard Unit of Ukraine destroyed a Russian Merlin-VR reconnaissance drone on the eastern front.

The Unmanned Systems Forces shared the information and released related footage on Facebook, CE Report quotes Ukrinform.

The Russian Research Institute of Modern Telecommunications Technologies unveiled the Merlin-VR unmanned aerial vehicle in 2021.

It is considered a relatively rare target, and according to open-source data, the cost of the system may exceed $300,000.

The Merlin-VR was designed for aerial reconnaissance in automatic and semi-automatic modes, including detecting positions, adjusting artillery fire, and monitoring the movement of personnel and equipment.

Photo: Instagram/usf_army