Bohdan Miroshnychenko / Defense
Some Ukrainian businessmen have started independently purchasing electronic warfare (EW) equipment to protect against air threats.
However, not everyone is doing it correctly – one entrepreneur bought EW equipment worth millions of hryvnias and started jamming everything indiscriminately, preventing Ukrainian drone-interceptor crews from completing their missions. As a result, “Shaheds” hit the same object.
EW is a very important part of air defense, which any entrepreneur can now enhance. However, to prevent harm, this must be done wisely and all actions should be coordinated with the military.
How private EW works, how to build infrastructure, train personnel, and what critical mistakes to avoid. “Defense” discusses all of this with Maksym Skoretskyi, head of the EW department of the Ukrainian Ground Forces.
“Over 50% of air targets are jammed by EW”
How important is the role of EW in Ukraine’s air defense system?
Air defense is a very complex system. It consists of many elements that complement each other.
EW can neutralize an air threat before it reaches the target. It suppresses control channels, jams navigation, and video transmission. This causes the enemy drone to lose control, failing to reach the intended target or significantly missing it.
Currently, over 50% of enemy air targets are jammed by Ukrainian EW.
Russians continuously improve their drones and missiles. For example, they install multi-channel CRPA antennas that protect the drone’s navigation and require more Ukrainian EW systems to suppress the target. Or they create MESH networks for stable communication. Is Ukraine keeping up with the Russians?
I would say the logic is reversed. It is precisely because of our successful work that the Russians are forced to develop their devices. First, we develop a new solution, their attacks become ineffective, and then they start to evolve and improve their drones. This process is ongoing.
I can say that in some areas we are even half a step ahead because we correctly predicted their further development.
How effective is EW against cruise missiles?
Many missiles, like drones, use the navigation field to guide to the target. Electronic warfare affects their GPS navigation, causing them to miss by approximately 100-200 meters or more. Thus, we create conditions under which an object can be damaged but not rendered inoperable.
But cruise missiles have other guidance systems. So they can target without GPS navigation.
Exactly. When we suppress the GPS signal, the missile switches to backup guidance systems: optical, radar, inertial, etc. However, due to high speed, the Russian missile does not have time to correctly adjust its course.
In fact, we jam the main guidance system and force the enemy missile to switch to a less effective way of targeting and miss.
“The entrepreneur jammed six drone interceptor crews with an electronic warfare system. Then his object was hit by ‘Shaheds.’
Let’s assume I’m an entrepreneur with money, and I have a critical object. What can I do to ensure the military with electronic warfare will protect me better?
Electronic warfare systems can divert a Russian drone from your object so that it falls in a field outside the city limits. But this will only work if everything is done wisely.
The set of tools and the number of specialists involved depend on the location of the object and the types of potential threats. Some areas are already well covered and can be strengthened selectively. Others are less protected and need protection systems built from scratch.
To clarify these points, you need to contact me or other representatives of the Electronic Warfare Forces to find out how we can organize coverage.
Representatives of some large private and state companies have approached this issue quite adequately. We have already established direct contact and managed to organize a more or less effective protection system.
How much might it cost to cover an object with electronic warfare?
It is impossible to say exactly because each case needs to be looked at individually. For some objects, it is enough to buy one, two, or three devices to strengthen an existing system. For others, significantly more is needed.
If we are talking about a large object, we’re talking about millions of hryvnias. But it’s cheaper than any repair, so it’s definitely worth it.
How does electronic warfare protection physically look around a critical object?
It’s not a bunch of antennas around the object. It’s a large system of means, which can be stretched for kilometers. We calculate optimal places for electronic warfare tools using certified software. Specially trained people determine exactly where the antenna should be placed to achieve maximum protection results for this particular object in conjunction with other existing means.
How difficult will it be to build such a stretched infrastructure for electronic warfare for my critical object?
Among the necessary infrastructure are: first, constant power supply; second, height; third, constant communication between points with installed equipment (Starlink, WiFi-bridges, etc.); fourth, the electronic warfare tools themselves; fifth, people who will remotely control the system.
The construction of infrastructure is the responsibility of businesses. However, we provide consultations and monitor the equipment’s functionality. If we notice a device isn’t working, we call and ask what happened. If necessary, we can service it ourselves.
But I warn you right away: if an entrepreneur tries to do everything on their own, nothing will succeed. All infrastructure and equipment must operate in a single air defense system. Individually, nothing will work.
There are funny cases: civilians take a dome car EW that only protects against FPV drones at a maximum distance of up to 100 meters and place it on a tower near their factory, thinking it will help against “Shaheds.”
Sometimes this self-activity causes great harm. Some entrepreneurs install more powerful devices without coordination and start jamming all frequencies randomly.
There was one case: an entrepreneur bought EW devices, placed them near his object, and during an attack, our drones couldn’t take off for interception because their control channels were jammed.
According to the rules, all EW devices are owned by the businessman, and his people ensure their operation. By the rules, these devices cannot be used contrary to the enterprise’s interests. But how, when, and against whom to activate them – it should be done under military command.
We often say, “every hamster in the field is an agronomist.” But a true agronomist is someone with a tractor who rents the field with the agrofarm’s director.
Are you sure it was Ukrainian businessmen installing them and not, for example, some hostile elements?
We know exactly who they are; there was a long conversation with them, after which we were able to connect them to our system. Under a unified command, they began to protect their objects much more effectively and stopped interfering with military operations.
There was another case when a businessman somehow bought a decent EW, spent several million hryvnias, and tried to protect his object near the frontline. During attacks, he jammed all frequencies as he thought was right. As a result, six interceptor drone crews couldn’t take off, and a dozen “Shaheds” hit that object.
Is it really so easy today to illegally buy a working EW?
In Ukraine, there are 170 officially registered EW system manufacturers. Many of them are large companies working directly with the Ministry of Defense and are not interested in such activities. But most firms operate in the shadow economy, with cash. This creates opportunities for anyone interested to purchase them.
There are many good EW (Electronic Warfare) manufacturers in Ukraine, but even more bad ones. I can just see how the bad manufacturers will now start going around the market and selling their products to businesses. How can one avoid a low-quality equipment supplier?
It’s very simple. Before writing a shopping list, you need to contact the Land Forces Command and simply ask: “Gentlemen, I want to organize a protection system for my facility. What do I need to do and what should I buy for this?” We are absolutely open to this and ready to consult without any delays.
By the way, it’s very difficult to buy a good EW system on your own, as all quality manufacturers work with the Ministry of Defense and supply only through the military or with approval from the command.
“Listen to the EW specialist as you would your neighbor”
Is it difficult to train civilians to use private EW systems?
I don’t see major problems in preparing civilians to use these tools. Currently, all EWs are remotely managed, and the command controls all equipment in their area of responsibility. Operators are simply needed who can timely turn on and off the EW and monitor its operation. These are a few possible combinations that need to be entered on a computer.
And who will train these people?
There are special training units and we are open to conducting such training. Often the manufacturers themselves train operators to use their equipment.
Do civilian business operators have discipline issues? After all, military personnel are trained to strictly follow orders and take responsibility for it. Civilian people might be freer or negligent in their actions.
Indeed, the responsibility for the timely switching on and off of the EW and information transfer must be as strict as possible.
There is one cartoon on YouTube about computer games, called “Friends in Battlefield”. And there a colonel tells a player on the team: “Do you have a ‘poop’ bucket? No? Then you’re leaving the computer to go to the toilet? If you step away from the computer, you’re not leveling up!”
It’s the same here. Step away from the computer and you’re not protecting the facility. A person who performs a task becomes part of the Defense Forces. They must always be on duty and in touch. Commands need to be executed quickly and correctly.
Let’s now establish a few commandments a businessman should know before starting to engage in their own air defense and setting up EW near their facility.
I am the organizer of the EW, let there be no other advisors before ME– work should be organized only through true EW specialists;
Do not self-initiate– build the system only after consulting with EW specialists;
Listen to military EW specialists as you would your neighbor– turn on EW only in coordination with military units;
Do not sin with quantity– quality is more important than quantity;
Once you’ve organized the system, control its operation – you cannot set up equipment and trust that everything will work independently;
If you don’t know, don’t meddle. If you know, execute – without at least minimal training and preparation, the correct operation of the EW system is impossible. Training and work are inseparable elements.
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To build an electronic warfare system around your critical object correctly, contact via email – i.tolkachov@army.mil.gov.ua
On the cover: Maksym Skoretskyi. Photo: Oboronka/Anna Shtopenko
