As Vladimir Putin walked past a line of military officers in Red Square in May 2025, a member of his security team was spotted carrying an unusual weapon, partially concealed under a black cloth.
Since then, multiple examples of a drone interceptor with the same distinctive tail-fin configuration have been filmed shooting down drones over battlefields in Ukraine.
The interceptor is known as “Elka” (“fir tree”) and is produced by an unidentified company in Moscow. It appears to be prepared for widespread use by the Russia military as a countermeasure against small reconnaissance drones and bomb-carrying FPV types.
FPV (first-person view) drones controlled via fiber-optic cables have been nearly impossible to jam since they first appeared in Ukraine in early 2024.
Elka carries no explosive payload and instead relies on its momentum and a reinforced, pointed nose to destroy enemy drones upon impact.
The X-shaped interceptor is launched from a pistol-like device and reportedly includes a targeting system that human operators activate by locking onto the flying target.
Once launched, the interceptor can autonomously pursue a drone up to 1.6 kilometers away.
This “fire-and-forget” system removes the need for communication with the operator, meaning it cannot be electronically jammed during flight.
Monika Ahlborn, who runs the well-known “Drone Wars” social media page, told Radio Free Europe that Elka’s apparent success likely stems from its “simplicity, low cost, and autonomy.”
There is no confirmed price for the device, but some estimates suggest it costs around $500 per unit.
“The system appears relatively light, portable, and comparatively inexpensive, making it usable at the unit level rather than being limited to expensive air defense systems,” she said. According to her, the “fire-and-forget” capability also “reduces the burden on operators in high-tempo combat environments.”
A purported instruction leaflet, which also outlines the system’s weaknesses, notes that “given the material it is made from, Elka must be handled with care.” It also reveals that the device can only be used during daytime and in dry weather conditions.
The leaflet advises operators to target drones only when they are against a clear or cloudy sky. Combat footage shows Elka tracking and destroying drones flying on stable trajectories against uncluttered sky backgrounds. Low-flying, erratic FPV drones over complex terrain may be harder for the system to intercept.
In Ukraine, one countermeasure against fiber-optic FPV drones has been the use of net guns, which fire nets expanding up to 3.5–4 meters. These devices can entangle and bring down enemy drones within a maximum range of about 30 meters and cost under $200.
Jan Ruzicka, head of the Czech group Wings of the Phoenix, which supplies Ukrainian troops with counter-drone equipment, told Radio Free Europe that around 500 net guns have been delivered, with roughly 40 reported successful drone takedowns.
However, he emphasized: “This weapon is a last resort—it is used when everything else has failed and the enemy drone is in the final stages of its flight toward a soldier or position.”
He added that such weapons have also been used against so-called “ambush drones,” which lie in wait near roads and paths for signs of movement.
Iryna Rybakova, a press officer with Ukraine’s 93rd Mechanized Brigade, said that for high-risk missions, net guns have become a routine part of counter-drone tactics.
“We take all weapons with us,” she said, describing movements near the front line. “In addition to machine guns, we also carry shotguns and small net launchers produced by the Ukrainian company Ptashka.” She also described these tools as the last line of defense.
At least one documented successful use of net guns in combat was recorded in late 2025, while a video from April 2026 shows a Ukrainian special forces soldier switching between a net gun and a rifle while being chased by a drone.
Ruzicka noted that demand for these devices is growing: “I have far more requests from the military than I can meet,” but added that the limitations of the first-generation systems are evident.
Single-shot weapons are slow to reload, meaning soldiers effectively have only one chance to take down a pursuing drone. Other battlefield veterans predict that net guns may be a “passing trend,” likely to be replaced as the search continues for a sustainable solution against unjammable FPV drones.
