Dragon Drones: Ukraine to Use Fire-Spitting Weapons to Strike Fear in Russian Troops

The Russia-Ukraine war is heating up every day and the latest inclusion of 'Dragon Drones' in this struggle has raised the stakes even more. Ukraine, in a recent social media post, has revealed that they have begun using low-flying drones nicknamed 'Dragon Drones' to attack its invaders, CNN reported. These drones released thermites on enemies, something which had been used to success by countries in the past two World Wars, to cause loss of life as well as destruction.

The weapons were featured in a series of videos uploaded by the Ukrainian Defense Ministry on social media platforms on September 3, CNN reported. These drones were dropping torrents of fire – molten metal on Russian-occupied positions in tree lines. The 'fire' is a white-hot mixture of aluminum powder and iron oxide, called thermite. While falling off from the drones they burn at 4,000 degrees Fahrenheit (2,200 degrees Celsius) and can damage tree covers as well as kill troops.

The 'Dragon Drones' got their name because the thermite, when released from the air, looks like a fire-spewing mythical dragon, CNN reported.

"Strike drones are our wings of vengeance, bringing fire straight from the sky!" a social media post from Ukraine’s 60th Mechanized Brigade said. "They become a real threat to the enemy, burning his positions with an accuracy that no other weapon can achieve," the post continued.

The post also added that Ukrainian 'Vidar' will not allow Russian women to sleep, CNN reported. Vidar refers to the Norse deity of vengeance.

Nicholas Drummond, a defense industry analyst specializing in land warfare and a former British Army officer believes that the use of these drones is Ukraine's way of terrifying Russian authorities. 1

"It is very nasty stuff. Using a drone to deliver it is quite innovative. But used in that way its effect will have been psychological more than physical," Drummond shared. "I understand that Ukraine only possesses a limited capacity to deliver a thermite effect, so this is a niche capability rather than a new mainstream weapon," he said.

Drummond reiterates that thermite is not a weapon to take lightly, CNN reported. "I would not have liked to have been on the receiving end," he said. Drummond likes the drone strategy used by Ukraine as it gives Russia reason to be fearful. 

"We have seen instances where Russian forces attacked by multiple drones have deserted their positions. The more Ukraine can instill a fear of drones the better its chances of success," Drummons said, CNN reported. "Thermite keeps up the pressure."

As per international law, the use of substances like thermite is not illegal in warfare, Al Jazeera reported. But the law prohibits countries from using such weapons on civilians and military targets inside populated areas, or on forested areas unless the green area is suspected to be hiding military objects. 

Human Rights Watch in its 2022 report on incendiary weapons claimed that thermite can cause damage to an individual's muscles, ligaments, tendons, nerves, blood vessels, and even bones, CNN reported. 

Drummond believes that Ukraine needs to think bigger to have a shot at winning this war, CNN reported. "If Ukraine wants to achieve real impact, it needs sufficient mass to force a proper breakthrough as it has in Kursk. This is what victory looks like," he explained.