#Combat Drones

The Bayraktar TB2 helped shape the first phase of Ukraine’s defense, taking out tanks, convoys, and warships in 2022. Then it vanished. In June 2025, it returned—with a precision strike on a Russian landing craft. This is the story of why the drone disappeared—and why it’s flying again now.

Ukraine’s defense industry was born of necessity. Once reliant on foreign arms, it is now producing battle-tested weapons behind some of the war’s biggest breakthroughs. Kyiv is seeking investment to scale production and position itself as a major player in the global arms market.

Ukrainian Armed Forces targeted the Alabuga Special Economic Zone in Russia’s Republic of Tatarstan, one of the country’s main production hubs for Shahed-136 suicide drones—also known by their Russian name, Geran-2. But what made this latest strike stand out wasn’t just the location—it was the weapon.