On the night of 28 August, Russia attacked Kyiv with Geranium-3 jet drones with foreign components, killing 15 people, including 4 children
On the night of 28 August, the Russians launched a combined attack on the capital of Ukraine. They used, among other things, new Geranium-3 jet drones. An analysis of the construction of the downed drones revealed a number of components of European and Chinese origin. As of 13:00 on 28 August, 15 people have been reported dead, four of them children. The debris is still being cleared, and there are still people missing and seriously injured, so the number of victims may increase. Friday, 29 August, has been declared a day of mourning in Kyiv.
Geran-3
The Geran-3 is a Russian version of the Iranian Shahed-238 with a small Tolou-10/13 turbojet engine, which is a copy of the Czech PBS TJ100 engine. The engine uses a Chinese control unit. The design uses a German-made Bosh 0-580 high-pressure fuel pump. The maximum speed is 550-600 km/h, and can reach up to 700 km/h at peak. Maximum range - up to 2,500 km, maximum altitude - up to 9 km, flight time - up to 2 hours. Drone dimensions: length ≈ 3.5 m, wingspan ≈ 3 m, take-off weight 250-380 kg (significantly more than Geran-2). The first use of Geran-3 by the Russians was recorded in January 2024.
The wreckage indicates the use of the same avionics units as in the Shahed-136/Geran-2 for route loading and vector flight control. They can be equipped with passive radars and infrared sensors to evade air defences. According to the Ukrainian intelligence service (GUR), Russia has established mass production of Geran-3.
Combat capability and challenges for defence
Jet drones are difficult to intercept - interceptor drones and mobile groups armed with machine guns cannot effectively shoot down such drones. They are closer to cruise missiles in terms of their characteristics, and full-fledged air defence systems, aircraft or modern man-portable air defence systems are needed to counter them. The Geran-3 is used in conjunction with the Geran-2 and trap drones in massive attacks to overwhelm air defences and increase the chances of hitting targets.
The reactive design also brings disadvantages. The Geran-3 is much heavier, more expensive to build and has a shorter range. They are more difficult to produce in the same volume as Shahids, and modern air defences can shoot them down relatively easily due to the pronounced heat signature of the jet engine and subsonic flight speed. It is only necessary to have a sufficient number of such weapons.