Automatically translated version. May contain inaccuracies compared to the original.
The enemy can adjust drones in real time and attack moving targets along the route.
Russia monthly disables from 37 to 40 Ukrainian Railway locomotives. Since the start of the full-scale invasion, more than 500 machines have been damaged, more than 60% of them in the last eight months. This is what the head of the board of Ukrzaliznytsia, Oleksandr Perovskyi, told Politico.
The company believes the Russian attacks have a broader aim. “The Russians seek to isolate our frontline communities, sow panic and fear among already exhausted residents, and paralyze the economy,” Perovskyi said.
According to him, Russians began targeting passenger trains in the autumn of last year when they obtained mesh antennas. This technology allows drones to transmit signals to each other or connect to ground transmitters in Belarus or occupied territories.
Thanks to this, operators can control drones in real time even while EW (electronic warfare) measures are operating. This enables attacking moving targets, including trains.
Mostly Russia attacks trains with armed drones. Ukraine cannot yet fully counter this threat. The Ministry of Defense, together with drone-countermeasure manufacturers, is seeking solutions.
Most attacks fall within 200 km of the front line or the Russian border. It concerns primarily eastern and southern regions of Ukraine.
But Moscow has expanded both the geography of attacks and the list of targets.
“Now the Russians use antennas and repeaters in Belarus to strike also at western regions,” Perovskyi said.
This became evident last weekend near the Polish border. A Russian drone struck a train shortly after another left the station. It carried European security advisers and former heads of state, among them former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson.
At that time diplomats had already crossed the border from Poland. Ukrzaliznytsia stated that the drone likely tried to strike the diplomatic train that departed ahead of schedule.
“The latest strikes near the Polish border show that their additional aim is to raise risks for our foreign guests, partners, diplomats, politicians, and journalists. The Russians want them to fear traveling to Ukraine as well. After all, the fact that despite all attempts we remain open and interesting to the world greatly angers them,” Perovskyi said.
Russian attacks on Ukrainian trains have become regular in recent months. In August, drones struck locomotives and passenger trains in various regions. In particular, after the strike on the Sumy–Kyiv train, passengers and railway workers were evacuated.
23 In August, a Russian jet drone attacked the Zhytomyr–Odesa train, from which 593 passengers were evacuated.
Several days after this, the drone hit a suburban train in the Mykolaiv region, and passengers were also evacuated from the carriages.
In June, attacks were targeted directly at locomotives in the Sumy and Zaporizhzhia regions; in one of them an assistant locomotive driver was killed.
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