Pokrova EW system, which successfully neutralizes Shaheds, has been launched in Ukraine

13 February, 2024 Neutralized Russian Geran (Shahed) loitering munitions over Ukraine. Photo credits: Oleksandr Fedienko The national electronic warfare system Pokrova is successfully knocking out Russian Shaheds off course in the skies over Ukraine.

Yurii Ihnat, spokesman for the Air Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, announced this to LIGA.net. The Air Force spokesperson confirmed the operation and successful use of the Pokrova system in response to a Forbes article about Ukraine's powerful electronic warfare system capable of intercepting Russian strike drones. "Pokrova exists and is being used.

There are others that work. Electronic warfare systems work against all enemy air attack means," Ihnat shared. The Pokrova system uses spoofing technology that replaces satellite signals and thus misleads drone navigation devices.

Having diverted from the route, they fly past the target or crash unharmed. Russian-launched Shahed-136s began to be found on the ground without any signs of damage at the end of January this year.

An intact Shahed-136 drone was found in the Dnipropetrovsk region. Photo credits: National Police of Ukraine

Spoofing is invisible to drones and can be successfully used in contrast to the usual jamming of all signals.

The latter has little or no effect on the Shaheds due to the use of a fully autonomous inertial navigation system in their design, which allows them to continue moving in the direction of the target even without signals. "Even if all its channels are jammed, it still continues to fly by inertia. And when it leaves the range of the electronic warfare device, it can return to its course.

The Shahed's navigation is suppressed. That is, it goes off course in this way. That is why it is difficult.

But they are already being found in the fields, so it is possible to knock them down. In particular, with the help of electronic warfare systems, suppressing the navigation signal," Ihnat said.

Pokrova system

Apart from the principle of operation, no other details about Pokrova are known. However, it is likely that this name does not refer to a device but to a network of systems operating throughout the country.

This stems from the need for constant "influence" on the drone during its flight. Ukrainian MP Oleksandr Fediyenko said that the country already has developments that can neutralize Shahed drones. "Ukraine has a modern development, and not just one, that can interfere with the systems of such vehicles using electronic warfare (EW).

These are not one, not two, not three transmitters of influence on such aircraft. These are hundreds of thousands of devices that are being installed all over the country," the MP said.

The Bukovel-AD EW system is mounted on the chassis of an off-road vehicle, 2019. Photo from open sources

Ihnat noted that President Volodymyr Zelenskyy had instructed Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal to find a mechanism to purchase such systems even at the expense of local budgets.

Such a mechanism is needed, in particular, to protect critical infrastructure facilities.