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Russia Hit Kharkiv With a New Drone Called “Chernika.” Here’s What We Know About It
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![Maryna_kulakova]( "Photo of Maryna Kulakova")
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Russian forces have attacked Kharkiv using a new type of drone called Chernika for the first time, Kharkiv Mayor Ihor Terekhov reported via Telegram on June 30. The strike is part of an ongoing wave of aerial assaults on the city, which has suffered 16 attacks over the past week alone.
“Most strikes have been with Shaheds, but specialists from the Emergency Situations Department have now recorded a hit by a new type of drone called Chernika,” Terekhov said.
According to him, the drone carries a warhead comparable in power to that of the Molniya drone but features a different design. The strike damaged several vehicles in a garage cooperative.
Kharkiv Regional Governor Oleh Syniehubov confirmed that Russia used the Chernika drone on June 27.
Earlier in June, Ukraine’s Southern Defense Forces reported shooting down three upgraded Chernika-2 drones using Ukrainian interceptor drones.
Footage of the downed drones showed one with a handwritten message on the fuselage: “Will someone just shoot it down already!”
Chernika: low-cost build, high-risk payload
The Chernika-2 is a lightweight “flying wing” drone with a cruising speed of 75 km/h, an operational range of up to 80 kilometers, and a flight ceiling below 1.5 kilometers.
It carries a 3.5-kilogram warhead and is equipped with a terminal guidance system, allowing it to strike targets even when control or GPS signals are jammed. Despite these features, the drone is believed to be relatively low-cost.
Its dark-colored body suggests it's intended for night operations, though recent strikes have occurred during daylight and there’s no sign of an infrared camera onboard.
Military expert Oleksandr Kovalenko noted that despite its improvised construction—possibly using black foam—the drone poses a real danger.
“Jokes about foam and sticks aside, this cheap improvised device with terminal guidance and a 3.5 kg warhead is dangerous not only to personnel but also to lightly armored vehicles,” he said.
The Chernika is reportedly armed with a high-explosive fragmentation warhead known as Kaplia , often used to strike targets behind Ukrainian front lines.
Previously, Ukraine’s defense innovation cluster Brave1 has introduced the country’s first dedicated anti-drone ammunition designed for standard infantry rifles.
