Vampire bomber drone rescues two captured Ukrainian soldiers from Russian captivity
Ukrainian servicemen from the 21st Separate Mechanised Brigade have used the Vampire, a heavy attack hexacopter developed by the SkyFall company, to free two brothers-in-arms from Russian captivity.
Source: 21st Separate Mechanised Brigade
Details: The operation took place in April 2026 on the North Slobozhanshchyna front.
"During a Russian assault on the positions of a neighbouring brigade, two infantrymen of ours were captured, and the command requested assistance. A Vampire crew from our brigade was stationed a few kilometres from the scene. The soldiers immediately prepared the drone and moved to carry out the rescue," the 21st Brigade said.
According to the brigade, Russian troops were already escorting the prisoners towards their positions when a Ukrainian hexacopter appeared overhead.
"Upon hearing the distinctive sound of the Vampire hovering above them, the Russians panicked, abandoned the prisoners and tried to flee. However, they were unsuccessful: following precise strikes by our drone operators, two occupiers were killed, giving the Ukrainian soldiers a chance to escape," the military said.
According to information from the neighbouring brigade, both freed infantrymen have returned to their units.
Footage released by the 21st Brigade shows a Vampire heavy attack drone crew from the unit detecting captured Ukrainian soldiers during the Russian assault, striking Russian troops and forcing them to abandon the prisoners.
The brigade stressed that this is the first confirmed case on the North Slobozhanshchyna front in which Ukrainian troops were freed from captivity with the help of a drone.
"We thank Rubin, Balta, Balu and Diadia Kolia for their determination and skilful work! Another hero of this story is the Ukrainian-made unmanned system Vampire – a combat machine capable of spreading panic among the occupiers by its mere presence," the brigade emphasised.
For reference: The Vampire is a heavy Ukrainian attack hexacopter developed by the SkyFall tech defence company. The system is used for bombing, remote mining, engaging equipment and logistics missions. Russian forces refer to the Vampire as Baba Yaga.
Background: Ukrainska Pravda reported earlier that three Russian soldiers had been captured by the Droid TW-7.62, a reconnaissance and strike ground robotic system, based on the NUMO platform.
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