Ukraine's Defence Intelligence reveals foreign equipment used by Russia to produce Geran drones

Defence Intelligence of Ukraine (DIU) has released data on 20 pieces of foreign technological equipment used to produce various modifications of Geran attack drones at the Alabuga Special Economic Zone in Russia's Tatarstan, located about 1,200 km from the front line.

Details: War&Sanctions portal, an open-access online database that catalogues individuals, entities, and assets linked to Russian military aggression against Ukraine; DIU on social media

Quote: "Today's publication includes lathes, milling and drilling machines, machining centres, industrial robots, automatic component placement machines, soldering robots and other equipment from Chinese, German, Japanese, Swiss and Iranian manufacturers."

More details: DIU reported that the production facility uses a VMC 1000Q vertical machining centre from the Chinese company SMTCL (Shenyang Machine Tool Co.) and an RS-1R automatic component placement machine from Japan's JUKI.

DIU also identified a mechatronic production line from Germany's Festo, fitted with a Melfa industrial robot made by Japan's Mitsubishi.

The foreign equipment is used for machining metal and other materials, mounting SMD components onto printed circuit boards, and training personnel on specialised production lines, DIU said.

It has called on manufacturers of high-tech equipment to strengthen oversight of the end users of their products and their actual place of use, including through on-site inspections at the addresses they provide. The agency also proposed that spare parts, components, software, updates and servicing be subject to enhanced control procedures.

In addition, DIU called for regular checks of distributors, dealers, and other intermediaries to identify re-exports or changes in end users, as well as investigations into cases where manufacturers' products are found in Russia's military-industrial complex and the tracing of their supply chains.

Read more: Russia's high-security economic zone: how Alabuga, the country's main drone factory, operates

Background:

• It was reported earlier that Russia continues to expand the industrial site at the Alabuga Special Economic Zone, where production of attack drones is concentrated. New production halls are being built and infrastructure expanded in the southern part of the economic zone.
• DIU previously released a detailed breakdown of Russia's new Geran-4 jet-powered attack drone, covering its foreign-made components and key tactical and technical specifications, alongside an interactive 3D model.
• In January, DIU posted a detailed analysis of the new Russian Geran-5 attack drone, including an interactive 3D model, its components, electronic component base and key tactical and technical characteristics.

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