Jet drones begin attacking Russia

On the night of July 14, a jet drone of an unknown type crashed in the Kursk region. The Russian media reported about the incident. Around 00:30 a.m., an explosion blasted out in the city of Kurchatov, Kursk Region.

An unknown UAV flew at a low altitude with a specific sound, which made the locals confuse it with an airplane. According to local residents, the unknown drone hit the top of a tree and fell near one of the houses.

The wreckage of the drone scattered over a large area, some of it fell into a local reservoir. According to the fragments of the drone found at the site, it was an aircraft-type UAV with a wing made of composite material. However, based on the available photos, it is difficult to estimate the approximate dimensions of the UAV.

Photo of the wreckage of a downed UAV in the Kursk region, July 14, 2023

Photo of the wreckage of a downed UAV in the Kursk region, July 14, 2023

Traces of burning can be seen on the wreckage, indicating the presence of fuel tanks and, accordingly, an internal combustion engine.

Debris found at the crash site of the unknown drone, were later identified as a Kingtech K-210G jet engine. The turbine is made in Taiwan and is sold on the civilian market for £3,000.

Kingtech K-210G engine. The photo is illustrative

Photo of the wreckage of a downed UAV in the Kursk region, July 14, 2023

The manufacturer's website states that the engine weighing 1.7 kg is capable of providing a thrust of 21 kg, and its consumption is 590 g of fuel per minute.

It means that for a flight lasting 1 hour, an aircraft with one turbine must have 28 liters of kerosene. To ensure the flight, the thrust of the aircraft must be at least 30% of its mass, so it can be assumed that the weight of the drone did not exceed 50-60 kilograms. This estimate also correlates with the size of the fuselage fragments.

If the reports about the drone falling due to crashing into a tree are true, then the drone is not equipped with an optical station. This means that, above all, the UAV was controlled by an inertial control system with corrections based on GPS signals. Thus hitting a tree can be explained by the wrong choice of flight height.

The absence of an optical system clearly indicates that the unknown drone was not used for reconnaissance and was probably created as a kamikaze drone, carrying a combat unit on board.