Ukraine will soon test-fire a low-cost, AI-enabled miniature missile designed to counter low-flying drones amid rising Russian drone attacks on the country, including in the capital, Kyiv.
The Mark 1 anti-aircraft missile, designed by Estonia-based tech firm Frankenburg Technologies, will be tested in early 2025 at an unspecified location in Ukraine.
The manufacturer said the low-cost miniature missile is designed to use artificial intelligence software to identify and target incoming drones.
The missile can counter drones flying at altitudes of up to 2 kilometers or 1.2 miles, Kusti Salm, Frankenburg Technologies’ chief executive officer, who previously served as a top official in the Estonian Ministry of Defense, said in an interview with Janes last month.
“Our goal is to help Ukraine win this war. To do this, we offer a sample of a new low-cost missile to shoot down air targets, primarily unmanned aerial vehicles,” Salm told The Kyiv Independent in November 2024.
The anti-UAV missile system is also cost-competitive. According to the company’s website, it aims to “develop missile systems that are ten times more affordable and a hundred times faster to produce.”
If these tests are successful, Ukraine can also sign a contract for domestic production of the Mark 1 anti-aircraft missile.
Notably, Estonia and Ukraine signed a 10-year bilateral security agreement in June last year. The deal stipulated that Estonia would supply Ukraine with defense aid worth more than 100 million euros (US$107 million) in 2024 and allocate at least 0.25% of its gross domestic product (GDP) annually for military support to Kyiv in the 2024–2027 period.
The anti-drone missile test comes at a time when Russia has dramatically increased its drone attacks on Ukraine.
Just in the first three days of 2025, Russia launched more than 300 drones against Ukraine, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy wrote in a Telegram post on January 3.
Earlier, CNN reported that Russia has increased its drone attacks on Ukraine by more than six times in the past six months, with strikes rising from around 400 in May to over 2,400 in November.
This escalation is fueled by the rapid expansion of the Iranian-designed Shahed drone manufacturing facility in the Alabuga Special Economic Zone in Russia’s southern Tatarstan region, about 600 miles east of Moscow.
According to Ukrainian defense intelligence sources, the factory produced 2,738 Shahed drones in 2023 and more than doubled that figure in 2024, manufacturing 5,760 units between January and September.
Ukrainian defense officials have also noted that Iranian-designed Shahed drones often fly at very low altitudes to evade air defense systems. Thus, the Mark 1 anti-aircraft missile, which can intercept incoming drones flying at an altitude of up to 2 kilometers, will be a valuable addition to Ukraine’s arsenal.
A Rising Estonian Defense-Tech Start-Up
Frankenburg Technologies is a defense-industrial company founded in 2024 and headquartered in Tallinn. It currently operates in Ukraine, Latvia, and Estonia. However, the company will soon start operations in the UK as well.
“Frankenburg Technologies is planning to open a new office in London, initially employing upwards of 50 people. Specializing in the manufacture of low-cost air defense missiles, the rapidly growing company already collaborates closely with the UK defense industry,” the UK prime minister’s office said in a statement on December 16, adding that the company “will invest €50 million (US$52 million) into the UK for research and development into low-cost rocket motors.”
Salm took on the CEO role in September last year after resigning from the Estonian Defense Ministry. He served as Defense Secretary in the Estonian Ministry of Defense.
Later, Former Commander of the Estonian Defense Forces (EDF) Gen. Martin Herem and deputy commander Maj. Gen. Veiko-Vello Palm also joined the company after leaving the EDF.
Ukraine War And The Evolving Anti-Drone Warfare
Cheap, weaponized FPV (First Person View) drones have transformed the battlefield of Ukraine and compelled militaries to innovate numerous novel ways to counter the deadly threat.
While traditional air defense systems can protect against drones, the missiles these systems employ are much costlier than the drones. Aircraft and choppers have also been employed in fighting drones. Here, a Ukrainian Mi-8 Helicopter can be seen flying alongside the Shahed drone before a door gunner blasts it with a machine gun. Mi-24 helicopter gunships have also been used to shoot down drones with 23 mm cannons.
Ukrainian and Russian militaries have also experimented with cheap, innovative ways to counter the drone threat.
In June 2024, the Russian military showcased its “anti-drone buggy” to counter low-flying drones. The vehicle sports multiple automatic weapons mounted on a light chassis. Unspecified “anti-drone weapons” are fired from the grenade launch tubes mounted at the front and rear of the vehicle.
Similarly, Russian “Turtle Tanks” have also become extremely popular. These ‘wild-looking’ tanks, mainly T-72s, are designed to stop drones and make them explode before reaching the tank itself. These tanks have an improvised steel roof and siding, as well as anti-drone slat armor covering the entire original vehicle. While these tanks are vulnerable to mines and artillery fire, they are better protected against FPV drones.
In April 2023, the Ukrainian military demonstrated its domestically developed ANTI-DRONIC GUN QUERTUS AD G-6. This US$11,000 anti-drone gun works by throwing radio waves to overwhelm the connection between a drone and its operator. Thus, by severing the connection between the drone and its operator, it can cause them to crash.
Both militaries have also experimented with an array of EW devices that work by jamming the drone signals.
Last year, Webslingers were also noticed on the battlefield. Webslingers are essentially net-launching drones that catch and down enemy quadcopters. The tactic is simple: Approach the enemy drone from above, as few FPV Drones have an upward-facing camera. Then, descend before throwing a net at the enemy drone that will entangle it and make it crash. Both Ukrainian and Russian militaries are using these Webslingers.
Any future battlefield will involve the heavy use of drones. As the drone warfare landscape continues to evolve, military planners can ignore this threat at their own peril. They must innovate and design cost-effective solutions to deal with this emerging threat.
- Sumit Ahlawat has over a decade of experience in news media. He has worked with Press Trust of India, Times Now, Zee News, Economic Times, and Microsoft News. He holds a Master’s Degree in International Media and Modern History from The University of Sheffield, UK. He is interested in studying Geopolitics from a historical perspective.
- He can be reached at ahlawat.sumit85 (at) gmail.com
