#Tech

Russia is scrambling to defend its fuel industry after a relentless wave of Ukrainian drone strikes crippled refining operations and triggered the country’s worst gasoline shortage in nearly three decades.

At a one-day showcase of Ukrainian defense tech, manufacturers rolled out complementary UAV concepts meant to be used together: a heavy-range Cargo aircraft to carry supplies or drop munitions deep behind enemy lines; Sokil, an inexpensive front-line recon drone meant to be lost by the dozen; and Veresen, a carrier platform that can deliver two strike or recon copters into contested territory — or act as a stand-alone munition.

Russia’s airborne radar program has suffered another setback as the country struggles to modernize its fleet of A-50 early warning and control aircraft—known as Moscow’s answer to the US E-3 Sentry.