Ukraine Sets World Record for Drone-on-Drone Interception at 6,858 Meters

Ukrainian border guards set a new world record for a drone-on-drone interception after an FPV interceptor destroyed a Russian ZALA Z-20 reconnaissance drone at an altitude of 6,858 meters (4.26 miles) over the Chernihiv region.

Ukraine’s State Border Guard Service reported the interception on August 2, saying it was carried out by operators from the 105th Chernihiv Border Detachment using a STING interceptor drone.

Russian forces have increasingly deployed reconnaissance UAVs at high altitudes in an effort to keep them beyond the reach of Ukrainian short-range air defense and interceptor drones. The ZALA Z-20 targeted in the operation was flying at nearly 6.9 kilometers when the Ukrainian FPV drone reached and struck it.

The Russian ZALA Z-20 reconnaissance UAV was first introduced in 2023. According to the manufacturer, it has an operational range exceeding 100 kilometers, an endurance of more than six hours, and a maximum takeoff weight of 18 kilograms.

According to the State Border Guard Service, the engagement is the highest confirmed drone interception conducted by Ukrainian units operating in the Chernihiv sector.

The previous publicly reported altitude record belonged to Lasar’s Group, a drone unit of Ukraine’s National Guard, which intercepted another Russian ZALA Z-20 at approximately 6.4 kilometers.

The record follows another high-altitude interception on July 27, when Ukrainian operators used a Chaklun-KM drone to destroy a rare Russian Forpost-R strike and reconnaissance UAV at 4,300 meters (2.67 miles) over Russia’s Kursk region.

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