Russians Bemoan Kyiv’s New Thermite-Firing ‘Dragon Drones’: ‘Headache’

A Russian military blogger took to Telegram to bemoan Ukraine’s new so-called “dragon drones” with thermite charges, complaining that soldiers are being left to fend for themselves.

X (formerly Twitter) user Dmitri, from War Translated, an independent project that translates materials about the war, shared an excerpt of a post by Russian military blogger Two Majors, who has more than 1 million subscribers on Telegram.

“Russian opinion of the drones with thermite charge used against them in Kherson region. At the moment, they have nothing to counter it. The only clue is to build dugouts from concrete and firebrick,” Dmitri wrote.

Ukraine’s military has released several videos showing the drones in action on the battlefield. Thermite is a mix of aluminum and rust that reaches more than 4,000 degrees Fahrenheit when set alight—twice as hot as molten lava—according to the Science Channel. The Ukrainian Military Center reports that thermite is capable of burning through the armor of vehicles.

“The [Ukrainians] also got a new drone that drops a thermite charge. This has given us a headache,” said Two Majors, adding that Russian troops are trying to come up with ways to protect themselves from a potential attack by the incendiary drones.

“At first we were fiddling with nets so that the drone wouldn’t fly into the dugout, then with capes and blankets so as not to be seen in the drone’s thermal imager, and now we have to think of how not to get burned from the new drone,” the military blogger said.

Two Majors said that, for now, Russian soldiers “just need to dig deeper, use sand, and more sand.”

“Ideally, fireproof brick or concrete, and then whatever our hands are good at. There should always be water and sand to put out the fire,” the military blogger wrote.

“And all this, as you understand, is mostly at our own expense. This is the reality of any, forced to improve and ensure our own safety in conditions where new technologies threaten lives faster than information reaches the top and security measures are taken for us.”

Newsweek has contacted Russia’s Defense Ministry for comment by email.

Last week, open-source X user OSINT Technical shared footage that purportedly showed one of the drones showering Russian positions with a fiery substance, setting trees ablaze. It wasn’t immediately clear when or where the footage was filmed or who first released it.

Emil Kastehelmi, an open-source intelligence (OSINT) analyst, said on X that the “so-called Dragon drones” are “a new development in drone warfare.”

“This is something different from FPVs and bombers, and from a psychological viewpoint rather terrifying,” said Kastehelmi.

“Thermite is a substance that burns at very high temperatures. Not only do the trees and bushes burn, but it can also damage equipment, vehicles and fortifications, and cause severe burns to soldiers. With less vegetation, drone recon and strike missions are more effective.”

Kastehelmi said the weapons have added a “new twist to the fear of drones.”

“Imagine: out of nowhere, fire starts raining down from the sky, and there’s nothing you can do to stop it. You can’t put it out with water. Your comrades are screaming, caught in flames, like human torches,” he said.

Kastehelmi added that, while it’s too early to assess the drones’ effect on the battlefield, Russia “might also adopt the innovation in some form if it proves to be effective.”

Do you have a tip on a world news story that Newsweek should be covering? Do you have a question about the Russia-Ukraine war? Let us know via worldnews@newsweek.com.