"Vinaigrette" tactics on the front lines: why soldiers are compelled to purchase drones independently, by Alexander Karpyuk.

"We have faced a shortage of drones, including Mavic and FPV drones. The procurement process has been poorly managed. This has been felt across the entire front. Everyone is talking about it, especially those who have been in situations where a hundred FPV drones had to be shared among four battalions. What does a hundred FPV drones from the state mean? It means supporting the operations of four crews per day – 25 drones per crew. This is negligible. We are forced to argue just to ensure that at least four crews have drones each day, especially in the midst of the most intense battles! FPV drones are not prohibitively expensive to procure. The manufacturer states there are no production issues; they are simply not being purchased. Why is that? That is a question for the Ministry of Defense. If they are bogged down with all their tenders and bureaucracy, that is no excuse. Meanwhile, on the front lines, drones have to be divided literally by the meter among units," says Karpuk.

According to the serviceman, the issue lies in the lack of systematic supply. If the army received a steady supply of 200,000 drones every month, the military could rely on that. But in reality, one month they provide 200,000, the next month 60,000, then 120,000, and then 50,000. Therefore, brigades are now forced to purchase drones directly from manufacturers.

"Yes, we have complete chaos with procurement. I say this outright. I am not concerned with who is to blame — specific individuals or the system. The Ministry of Defense is responsible for this. And this system is not working," Karpuk continues.

He gives an example of when his unit ordered Shark-M drones. This is a critically important type of drone because it can fly for up to seven hours. "And we have a shortage of pilots." The Russians use their analogs, which can stay in the air for 6-7 hours, but Ukrainian defenders cannot, because the Ministry of Defense simply did not procure Shark-M drones.

"Did they not know that spring would come? That 'wings' would be needed?" asks the aerial reconnaissance operator, adding that now the military is forced to work on insane schedules, not sleeping, exhausting themselves, because the average operational time of a 'wing' is 2 hours. From that, you have to subtract an hour for the time it takes to reach the point of interest and return the craft. So, out of two hours of operation, you only have one hour. Meanwhile, the drone that can fly for 7 hours and provide information for hours on end has simply not been procured for the spring.

In Karpuk's opinion, the approach needs to change. A system should be established similar to an online store: there are manufacturers, there is the army, and there is a clear ordering mechanism. The commander enters the system, selects what is needed: three thousand FPVs, three 'wings' — and that’s it, without bureaucracy, without a 'vinaigrette' of drones of varying quality. Currently, they are purchasing everything indiscriminately, and our engineers are forced to cobble together something functional from this mess.

"This system reduces the army's effectiveness. We have a 'vinaigrette' of equipment, half of which does not work, and the other half arrives late. What frustrates me the most is that there are hundreds of people sitting in Kyiv who are fine with all this. They make presentations, write concepts… But if you are sitting in an office, and because of your procedures someone dies — get out and protest, speak up about it! Yet they remain silent. Now everything is centralized, and centralized procurement simply does not work. Even our brigade, which is one of the first in terms of drones, is not receiving what it should," says Karpuk.

Recall that the 24th OMBr shared footage of the attack on Russian positions near Chasovyi Yar.