StarGate Drone: Aerial Rescue Pulls Wounded From 30 km Kill Zone
Ukrainian troops used AI navigation to fly a casualty evacuation drone through electronic warfare jamming to recover two soldiers near the front line.
By Ayanda Kaminski ·
Two wounded Ukrainian soldiers were extracted from a frontline grey zone by a specialized aerial drone last week.
The 475th Separate Assault Regiment, known as CODE 9.2, recovered Yevhen and Artem using the StarGate platform. The two men, aged 25 and 24, suffered severe limb injuries. They were positioned roughly 5 km from the Russian border.
Ground extraction was not possible due to difficult terrain, water obstacles, and active enemy FPV drones. The unit spent one week preparing the missions with SkyFall, the drone manufacturer. Heavy Vampire attack drones suppressed Russian positions to provide cover for the operations.
During one rescue, the StarGate flew nearly 30 km to reach the soldier and the same distance back with the casualty on board. Russian forces deployed electronic warfare systems in the area to block satellite navigation signals. The drone’s AI-based navigation system maintained control without GPS data.
The StarGate has a maximum range of 30 km and carries a 150 kg payload. It includes a medical capsule with a stretcher for casualties. The aircraft reaches speeds of 105 km/h and is remotely operated.
Oleksandr “Flint” Nastenko, the regiment’s commander, said the experience will help establish a dedicated medical aviation unit. That new unit will specialize in aerial evacuation of wounded troops from the battlefield.
This operation follows a similar rescue on 19 October. That mission used a drone built by Gurzuf Defence to evacuate a wounded soldier for the first time.
Source: Ukrainska Pravda
