Ukrainian military rescues two wounded soldiers using aerial evacuation drone – video
Fighters from Ukraine's 475th Separate Assault Regiment (also known as CODE 9.2) have rescued two wounded soldiers from the battlefield within a week using the StarGate drone designed for aerial medical evacuations.
Source: 475th Separate Assault Regiment; SkyFall, the drone's manufacturer, in a comment to Ukrainska Pravda
Details: The drone was used to evacuate two soldiers: 25-year-old Yevhen, alias Izium, and 24-year-old Artem, alias Kolobok.
"Both sustained severe limb injuries and were in the grey zone, approximately 5 km from the Russian border. Due to the difficult terrain, water obstacles and the threat posed by enemy FPV drones, ground evacuation was impossible. Aerial evacuation was the only available way to save them," the unit said.
The military spent a week preparing the complex evacuation missions in coordination with representatives of SkyFall, the company behind the casualty evacuation drone. The operations required fire support and coordination with other units of the Ukrainian defence forces. Heavy Vampire attack drones were used to suppress Russian positions.
"During one of the missions, StarGate travelled almost 30 km to reach a serviceman's position and approximately the same distance back, this time with the soldier on board. In the operational area, the enemy actively deployed electronic warfare systems in an attempt to completely suppress satellite navigation signals," CODE 9.2 explained.
The StarGate drone's flight was controlled using an AI-based navigation system, enabling the evacuation mission to be completed successfully despite the loss of satellite navigation.
The experience gained from using drones for aerial evacuation is expected to help the regiment establish a dedicated medical aviation unit, said Oleksandr "Flint" Nastenko, commander of the 475th Separate Assault Regiment.
"It will specialise specifically in evacuating wounded soldiers from the battlefield by air," the commander explained.
SkyFall was previously reported to have developed the StarGate drone for the aerial evacuation of wounded personnel and handed it over to the military for frontline testing.
StarGate has a range of up to 30 km and can carry a payload of up to 150 kg. For casualty evacuation, it is fitted with a dedicated medical capsule equipped with a stretcher.
The SkyFall drone has a maximum speed of 105 km/h and is remotely operated. Its AI-powered systems allow it to function without GPS and in the face of electronic warfare interference.
On 19 October, a unique operation was also reported, in which the military evacuated a wounded soldier using an aerial drone for the first time. The operation was carried out using a drone manufactured by the Ukrainian company Gurzuf Defence.
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