Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko expects that the unmanned aerial vehicles that have recently been handed over by the United States to Ukraine will let Ukrainian servicemen in Donbas boost efficiency of their service, in particular, in the prevention of violations of the ceasefire.
“Today, the Armed Forces of Ukraine have received a batch of 24 RQ-11B Raven UAVs. A transport plane of the U.S. Air Force with the equipment on board has successfully arrived in Kyiv,” Poroshenko wrote on Facebook on July 27.
In his words, these drones will help “considerably boost the efficiency of the Ukrainian servicemen’s work, including in preventing violations of the ceasefire.”
As the U.S. Embassy in Kyiv wrote on Facebook, 24 RQ-11B Raven Unmanned Aircraft Systems (comprised of 72 aircraft and associated equipment) arrived at Boryspil International Airport on July 27. The Raven Unmanned Aircraft System is a hand-launched reconnaissance and surveillance tool. The system transmits live airborne video images and location information to ground control stations. This capability can provide day or night aerial intelligence and enables operators to navigate, recognize terrain, and record information for analysis.
Raven system is part of the European Reassurance Initiative package and on-going security assistance efforts in Ukraine.
“Several dozen Ukrainian soldiers already have completed training on Raven Unmanned Aircraft System in Huntsville, Alabama,” the embassy said.
The United States has committed more than $600 million in training and equipment to help Ukraine better defend its sovereignty and territorial integrity.
