Ukraine Unveils Dual-Control FPV Drone That Stays Online Even When Fiber Link Fails

Ukrainian military personnel have tested a modified FPV drone equipped with two parallel control systems—fiber-optic cable and radio signal—designed to maintain operability if one channel fails.

The development was described by Ukrainian servicemember and journalist Tetiana Chornovol, who currently serves as a platoon commander in the Armed Forces of Ukraine. She said the system was created by an engineer within her unit to address recurring signal losses during operations.

The dual-control configuration increases the cost of the drone by approximately 2,500 UAH compared to standard fiber-optic FPV systems. The modification allows operators to switch to radio control if the fiber-optic cable is damaged or disconnected.

“Especially painful is when a large drone carrying a significant payload is lost far from the target—it is a major stress for the entire crew. However, nothing prevents this drone from reaching the target, even if not as precisely as with fiber optics, using radio waves. And these are not all the advantages of dual control,” Chornovol said.

Fiber-optic-controlled drones are increasingly affected by cable breakage during long-range flights, as well as by physical issues such as cable loops that disrupt video transmission. In such cases, switching to radio control allows the drone to continue its mission while the cable unwinds naturally.

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War in Ukraine

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Initial prototypes were assembled directly by military personnel, but the unit later coordinated with the Ukrainian manufacturer “General Chereshnia,” which produced a batch of ten 13-inch drones with integrated dual-control systems for further field testing.

Earlier, Ukrainian company UFORCE unveiled the “Bucha” strike drone, a swarm-capable system with a range of up to 200 kilometers. According to Militarnyi, it uses a mesh network for coordinated control and can operate via multiple communication channels, including Starlink.

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