Ukrainian Air Force on repeaters in Belarus: Now it's much harder for Russians to deliver precise strikes
Russia's capabilities for delivering strikes are now significantly limited. The disabling of repeaters in Belarus has weakened their ability to control kamikaze drones in real-time. This was stated by Yuriy Ihnat, head of the communications department of the Ukrainian Air Force, as reported by RBC-Ukraine.
According to Ihnat, Russian drones have not disappeared and continue to fly, but now it is much harder for Russians to deliver precise strikes.
The repeaters, which were located along the Ukrainian border on the Belarusian side, allowed the signal to be transmitted to the operator over a long distance. Now the enemy's ability to promptly coordinate their actions in these regions is significantly limited.
Ihnat noted that previously, thanks to operational information from the repeaters, the Russians could track movement and change strike coordinates directly during the attack.
"Having a real-time video feed, the enemy can strike with drones even at moving objects or change attack coordinates," he emphasized.
Specifically, thanks to a stable video signal, the Russians attacked Ukrainian trains and mobile fire groups with 'Shaheds'.
On June 19, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy appealed to Alexander Lukashenka with a demand to dismantle the repeaters that Russia uses for drone guidance. Zelenskyy stated that this demand must be fulfilled within a week. He also warned that if Belarus does not do so, Ukraine will eliminate the repeaters itself.
On June 24, Zelenskyy announced that the repeaters were no longer operational.