Sanctions force Russian reliance on Chinese drone parts
In recent months, increasing problems with the effectiveness of Russian Geran-2 drones have become noticeable. According to information obtained by "The Washington Post," these issues are attributed to Western sanctions that forced the Russians to shift from proven components to Chinese substitutes.
The Russian economy and its defence industry have long withstood Western sanctions, but in 2024, reports of additional issues are emerging systematically. There are already noticeable problems with the production of new tanks, advanced fighters like the Su-57, and now, it turns out, Geran-2 drones.
Russians have a problem with Geran-2 drones
As reported by the portal of the daily "The Washington Post," Ukrainian analysts and the British think tank Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) have already documented a higher failure rate of Geran-2 drones.
In their consistent assessment, a probable cause in this case is one of the components that helps regulate the drone's movements during flight. At the end of 2023, the manufacturer of Geran-2 began using a Chinese substitute for a South Korean solution that Russia had previously used but was cut off from due to Western-imposed sanctions.
As a result, operators of Geran-2 drones equipped with components acquired from China lose control during sharp turns; some drones crash, while others, due to unforeseen manoeuvres, become easy targets for Ukrainian air defences.
Geran-2 in Russian service
The Russians are trying to compensate for these problems with a larger number of attacks, which Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky mentioned in November. Just in October, approximately 2,000 Geran-2 drones were launched towards Ukraine.
Geran-2 is not a drone the Russians built from scratch. It is a locally produced copy of the Iranian Shahed-136 drone. It is a kamikaze drone measuring about 3.4 metres in length and 2.4 metres in wingspan. Each weighs around 200 kilograms, with approximately 40 kilograms allocated to the warhead. Iranian designs were characterized by light painting, but some time ago the Russians started using black paint to make detection and interception of drones at night more difficult.
