On April 8, 2026, in the middle of Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine, members of a private air defense training group are sitting in a secret training center – and practicing in an emergency. Not out in the field, but in a classroom. In front of them: simulators.image: AFP
In view of the veritable swarms of drones from Russia, Ukraine is now taking a new approach: private companies should strengthen its air defense. 16 companies have already received the green light.
April 12, 2026, 8:36 p.mApril 12, 2026, 8:36 p.m
Ania TSOUKANOVA / AFP
Companies with machine guns: With hundreds of Russian drones being fired into Ukraine every day, Kiev is opening its air defense to private companies. They should ensure their own security and thus relieve the burden on the army. This is what a high-ranking Ukrainian military officer told the AFP news agency.
translation
This text was written by our colleagues from French-speaking Switzerland and we translated it for you.
“The idea is that companies (…) can protect themselves from air raids with their own resources and personnel,” says Yuri Myronenko (48). He is Inspector General in the Defense Ministry and the mastermind behind the project that has already shot down Russian drones.
Since the invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Russia has relied heavily on so-called Shahed drones with a long range. The technology originally comes from Iran. The drones are now being mass-produced in Russia itself.
The Russian-made Shahed drones.image: Imago
Cheap but devastating, these drones specifically target residential areas and critical infrastructure, sometimes hundreds of kilometers from the front.
The largest attack to date since 2022 took place at the end of March: In addition to missiles, Russia used almost 1,000 drones within 24 hours.
Ukrainian air defense is quite effective with its thousands of mobile anti-drone teams. However, the system is not sufficient for the entire country.
The Ministry of Defense therefore sees support from private individuals as a solution. The army is supported by energy companies (which themselves are often the target of Russian attacks), logistics companies and security services.
As of now, 16 companies have received the necessary permits and “several” of them are already in use, says Lieutenant Colonel Myronenko. He himself used to be the commander of a drone unit.
Interceptor
“We are the first in the world to set up a system,” he says. One that allows private actors to shoot down “very difficult-to-hit aerial targets.”
He says:
“The first shots were fired two weeks ago.”
In the Kharkiv region in the northeast – close to the front line – a private company has already shot down several Russian drones. The name of the company remains secret. Heavy machine guns were used, mounted on remote-controlled gun turrets.
After the relevant announcement from the Ministry of Defense, “dozens” of other groups contacted the authorities to inquire, Myronenko assures.
He admits:
“We don’t expect private air defense to solve all our problems.”
But: “If one, two or five Shahed drones are shot down, that is already a help.”
The AFP observed aspiring drone operators at a training center run by a private company as part of this project. There you learn how to control the devices on computers and simulators.
Companies that want to take part must first go through special security checks to ensure that there are no connections to Russia. Only then are they allowed to buy weapons and train their personnel.
Above all, they must coordinate closely with the Air Force. This is the crucial point in this complex system that coordinates thousands of anti-aircraft teams in real time.
Special software shows in real time “who is deployed where, who shot down what and where new targets appear,” explains Yuri Myronenko.
It is clear to him that the future of this private air defense lies with so-called drone interceptors – i.e. devices that are intended to take out other drones directly in the air.
Under the pressure of constant attacks, Ukraine has already developed around 50 different models of such interceptor drones. An area that practically didn’t exist a year ago.
“Hit 95% of the targets”
The tough competition is forcing manufacturers to quickly make their systems better and at the same time cheaper. Some of them cost less than $1,000 each – and are therefore considered “affordable,” says Myronenko.
In the long term, private groups could even receive weapons that can also be used to launch cruise missiles. For example, portable surface-to-air systems – the very weapons that Russia regularly uses against Ukraine, he says.
“We don’t set any limits on the means of defense they can acquire,” he says. The reason: maximum flexibility in a war that changes “every three to six months”.
The focus is on a clear goal of the new Defense Minister Mykhaïlo Fedorov: 100% of all aerial targets – i.e. drones and missiles – should be detected by the end of the year. And: 95% of them should be shot down. For comparison: The kill rate is currently around 80%.
A goal that is “absolutely realistic,” says Yuri Myronenko. The reason for this is the massive increase in production: interceptor drones are now delivered to the army in “tens of thousands” per month.
“We have to show Russia clearly: terror against our population and civilian infrastructure will bring them nothing.”
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