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Russia Deploys Elite “Rubicon” Drone Unit North of Kharkiv, Targeting Key Logistics Route
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Ukraine’s 141st Mechanized Brigade reported on Oct. 7 that its Shkval assault unit clashed with Russia’s elite Rubicon drone unit near Sichneve in Dnipropetrovsk region, claiming to have retaken ground and inflicted significant losses in the area.
Ukraine’s 13th Khartiia Brigade stated that Russia has deployed its elite “Rubicon” drone unit to the northern approaches of the Kharkiv region, where it is targeting a key Ukrainian logistics route, according to the brigade’s analyst with call sign “Rybka,” in an interview with Hromadske Radio on October 7.
He told that the unit’s arrival initially caused acute pressure on Ukrainian positions. “This moment was really painful for us, but now it’s easier to operate,” Rybka said, adding that Rubicon’s mission was to “destroy a logistics supply route for the Ukrainian army in this part of the region.”
Rubicon—formally the Center for Advanced Unmanned Technologies—has emerged over the past year as one of Russia’s most consequential drone-warfare formations, centralizing procurement, operator training and new tactics, according to investigations by Radio Svoboda and Meduza.
Those reports locate the unit’s main base at Patriot Park near Moscow and trace its creation to an August 2024 order by Russian defense chief Andrey Belousov.
Open-source and Ukrainian media assessments describe Rubicon as organized into multiple specialized detachments that use FPV strike drones, loitering munitions such as Lancet, and counter-UAV teams.
Recent Ukrainian reporting estimated up to a dozen detachments—some focused on maritime drones—and highlighted integration with volunteer and small-factory suppliers across Russia.
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Frontline accounts attribute significant disruption of Ukrainian logistics to Rubicon’s operators. In July, an Azov Brigade drone commander said the unit’s arrival brought “blatant problems, primarily with logistics,” describing a campaign aimed at striking supply movement behind the line. “Without logistics it is very difficult, essentially impossible, to fight,” he said in an interview with Radio NV.
RFE/RL’s September reporting likewise detailed how Rubicon’s deployment to sectors from Kursk to Donetsk coincided with intensified strikes against vehicles and routes up to several kilometers behind the front, forcing Ukrainian units to adapt their resupply and drone-operator postures.
The Khartiia Brigade’s claim of a fresh Rubicon presence north of Kharkiv indicates the formation is now active on the approaches to Ukraine’s second-largest city, where drone warfare and electronic attack have increasingly shaped daily operations.
Earlier, it was reported that Russia’s elite “Rubicon” drone operations center was identified inside the Patriot complex near Moscow after open-source analysis of state media footage revealed matching interior details and fixtures.
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