1/ The commander of Ukrainian's unmanned air forces, Robert "Madyar" Brovdi, has announced a set of reforms to improve the effectiveness and logistical supply of drones in the Ukrainian armed forces. They are to be implemented over the next three months. ⬇️
2/ As described by the 'Cuckoo's Nest' Telegram channel:
🔺 Immediate implementation of existing collective experience.
3/🔺 Transparent results: 6-7 units of the Unmanned Systems Line of Drones will be included in the TOP-10 according to the existing rating of the effectiveness of the UAV units of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
4/ 🔺 Unified SYSTEM: all units of the Unmanned Systems Line of Drones performing combat missions at the front will operate in a single electronic system of planning, analysis, coordination, management, and online reporting with automatic verification of all results (June–July 2025).
5/ 🔺 12 layers of SBS influence on the strip in tactical and operational depth: immediate step-by-step launch or reinforcement in SBS units of the drone line of all 12 layers of influence on the assigned strip (following the example of the use of the 414th Separate Brigade,…
6/ …including SIGINT, EW, radar, enemy UAV fighters, remote mining, echeloned use of anti-Shahid means, anti-pilot action groups, etc.), immediate launch of retraining of the armed forces, competent provision of means, technologies and control systems (June–September 2025)
7/ 🔺 Building up our own existing ammunition production for competent and timely provision, and not according to the final principle of "we fight with what we have left." Ammunition is waiting for pilots, and not vice versa.
8/ 🔺 Single composition of critical components. Creation of a single supply warehouse and timely provision of units with a package of 50 critical means and components (such as StarLink, additional batteries for drones, mobile electronic warfare systems, FPV and bomber customization components, peripherals, power banks, pickups, etc.).
9/ 🔺 Ground robotic complexes - as the main means of logistics of warheads, drones and peripherals to pilots in positions, etc.
10/ 🔺 A single recruiting campaign for the SBS and basic + professional at the same time (analogous to the already introduced training system in the Drone Line), its own network of FPV schools, bombers, wings, electronic warfare, radio-electronic warfare, radars, fighters, NRK, etc.
11/ 🔺 PILOTS FLY, EVERYONE ELSE WORKS TO SUPPORT THE PROCESS. Revision and optimization of the combat and emergency response forces of the SBS, retraining and prompt training of inexperienced or incompetent crews,…
12/ … reprofiling by types of flight activities, revision of dead souls, guest workers, draft dodgers in military uniform, the tired and the dodgy.
13/ 🔺 COUNT-PLAN-RECEIVE-FIGHT. Unified analysis of the capabilities and fact of use, results in the context of drone / ammunition models for the implementation of accurate planning and implementation of support.
14/ 🔺 Separate section - the use of UAVs at strategic depth.
15/🔺 R & D (center for innovation and implementation of developments). Transformation of the current center from the brigade level to the level of support of the branch of the armed forces and more (15 models of already implemented projects and means).
1/ A Russian colonel reportedly died of cardiac arrest after it was discovered during a rotation that he had been lying to his superiors about his division's control of territory in the Kherson region. ⬇️
2/ Colonel Alexey Vladlenovich Plisov, callsign 'Ryazan', was the commander of the Russian 70th Motor Rifle Division of the 18th Combined Arms Army. The division was located on the left bank of the Dnipro river.
3/ Plisov is said to have repeatedly reported to his superiors that most of the islands in the Kherson region were under Russian control. However, Ukrainian reports and independent assessments have consistently assigned the islands to the 'grey zone' controlled by neither side.
1/ Russia is said to be lagging far behind Ukraine in drone production, with as many as 40 to 100 Ukrainian drones for every Russian one. An angry commentary from a Russian warblogger complains of an ongoing failure by Russia to produce enough drones for the front. ⬇️
2/ 'Voenkor Kotenok' writes: "For those infinitely removed from the front line and who understand the war as a stream of official media reports, let me explain: at the moment, full-scale counter-attacks are taking place in many directions and sectors of the…
3/ …Special Military Operation, involving small units/groups/detachments. The fighting is fierce, with varying success, with individual terrain, positions, strongholds, and the ruins of populated areas changing hands four or five times.
1/ Russian convicts are refusing en masse to join the army, according to the jailed Igor 'Strelkov' Girkin. In contrast to Yevgeny Prigozhin's recruitment campaigns in 2022-23, which attracted tens of thousands of recruits, distrust of the army is now said to be universal. ⬇️
2/ Girkin, who was jailed last year, is reportedly being held in the IK-5 penal colony in Kirovo-Chepetsk in the Kirov region. The facility specialises in holding ex-security officials (Girkin is ex-FSB). As such it might normally be expected to provide plenty of army recruits.
3/ The reality is very different though, according to Girkin. Interestingly, he says that the imprisonment of deserters is causing the wider prison population to become more aware of how the army treats its men and makes them more resistent to recruitment efforts:
1/ The constant presence of drones has fundamentally changed the nature of the war in Ukraine, according to Russian warblogger Alexander Kharchenko. The only way to survive is to stay underground, and it can take days to travel just a few kilometres. ⬇️
2/ On his Telegram channel 'Witnesses of Bayraktar', Karchenko writes:
"Movement is life. In the Special Military Operation, this axiom has taken on new meaning. Just a year ago, you could zip into Novohrodivka on a motorcycle and be out before sunset."
3/ "Now, such a scenario resembles a Hollywood blockbuster about tough guys. In real life, the brave and courageous move from one shelter to another. It can take a week to walk ten kilometres.
1/ A truck crash in Ufa, in which 12 vehicles were struck and two people killed by a runaway Chinese-made construction truck, has highlighted concerns about Russia's widespread substitution of European vehicles with cheaper Chinese alternatives. ⬇️
2/ The accident took place on 15 October 2025 at the intersection of Ufa Highway and Novozhenova Streets in Ufa in the Republic of Bashkortostan. According to local authorities, 11 passenger cars and a cargo truck were struck, killing two people and injuring six more.
3/ The vehicle which caused the accident was a Chinese-made Shacman truck, made by the Shaanxi Automobile Group Co., Ltd.. The company operates in 140 countries worldwide, with manufacturing plants outside China in Mexico, Algeria, and Kyrgyzstan.
1/ Russian 'grey imports' to support the war effort are facing a crisis, following simultaneous crackdowns by Chinese, Kazakh and Russian customs officials. Thousands of truckloads of drone parts and medical supplies are said to be stuck at the border. ⬇️
2/ Much of the frontline Russian army's supplies comes from 'humanitarian aid' organised by volunteer groups, who purchase supplies from Chinese companies and ship it overland to Russia – either directly across the Chinese border or via Kazakhstan, which is cheaper.
3/ However, multiple Russian warbloggers say that the customs services of all three countries have cracked down on grey imports, for differing reasons. They warn that this threatens a crisis for the front lines, and the loss of many Russian soldiers' lives.