Ukraine considered striking Shahed drone production facilities
27 September, 2023 Iranian Shahed-136 loitering munition. Photo credits: Sobhan Farajvan Journalists of The Guardian have gained access to a secret Ukrainian report on the production of Iranian Shahed attack drones, that Ukraine's government submitted to the G7 governments in August this year.
The main theses from the August secret document were published by journalists of The Guardian. The 47-page document claims that there were more than 600 raids on Ukrainian cities using unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) containing Western technology in the previous three months. According to the document, Iran has already diversified its production through the use of a Syrian factory delivering to the Russian port of Novorossiysk.
However, the production of drones is shifting to Russia, to the central Tartar region of Alabuga, although Iran continues to supply the components. The document considered an attempt to counteract the production by launching missile attacks on plants in Iran, Syria, and Russia. The attacks could have been carried out by the Ukrainian defense forces, provided that the partners provided the necessary means of destruction.
Report on Iranian drones
The document claims that Shahed-136/131 drones are being shipped from Iran to Russia via the Caspian Sea.
The drones are delivered from Tehran to the Iranian port of Amirabad, from where they are shipped to the Russian port city of Makhachkala. Iran has also diversified its production with the help of a Syrian plant that supplies drones to the Russian port of Novorossiysk. The production of drones is also being set up in the Russian Federation in Alabuga, Tatarstan.
In early July, a new Shahed-136 model marked "Y002" was shot down in Ukraine, which might have been assembled at a new production facility in Russia. The sample is said to have had a different wing molding, which could also indicate production at a new location.
The wreckage of the Shahed-136 model marked "Y002", July 2023
The markings on the electronic components of the drones used in Ukraine in recent months were destroyed by laser. The Russian military has also started using the names Geran-1 and Geran-2 for the drones.
All this might indicate an agreement between Russia and Iran to conceal the latter's role.
52 electrical components manufactured by Western companies were discovered in the Shahed-131 drone, and 57 in the Shahed-136 model. The manufacturers of those components include companies headquartered in the countries of the sanctions coalition: the United States, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Germany, Canada, Japan, and Poland. Customs information is said by the Ukrainian report to show that almost all the imports to Iran originated from Turkey, India, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Vietnam, and Costa Rica.
According to the report's information, a pause in attacks that lasted from 17 November to 7 December was likely due to the adaptation of drones to the Ukrainian winter.
In addition, Russia and Iran are already working on a new engine for the Shahed-136, which should provide better speed and range.