Russian Troops Put Spinning Steel Cables on Vehicle to Fend Off Drones

Russian troops are experimenting with a contraption that spins metal cables to guard automobiles from small loitering munitions.

The machine was seen on the “Conflict Correspondents” program of the Russian state TV channel Smotrim, which reported on Sunday that the gadget was constructed by mechanics from the seventieth Motor Rifle Regiment in Zaporizhzhia.

Fitted to an uncrewed ground vehicle referred to as a Courier, the defensive instrument resembles a big weed whacker that is raised to spin vertically.

They’re primarily discs with roughly 9 or 10 skinny cables that whip apart incoming objects. Every disc, turned by way of a shaft, stands out from one of many Courier’s 4 sides.

The Courier, a tracked, 550-pound Russian ground drone, is mounted with what seems to be a motor that may spin all 4 shafts concurrently.

“When an FPV drone tries to strike, the cables both knock it down or deflect it to the facet,” mentioned a person recognized by state media as a squad chief named “Struk.” He described the spinner as a check machine.

The Courier is a multi-purpose drone, which means that it will possibly probably be used to move cargo, retrieve the dead or wounded, or be fitted with weapons for assault missions.

Uncrewed floor automobiles have risen shortly as a brand new entrance of the warfare’s know-how race, with Russian and Ukrainian forces each hoping to scale up manufacturing of floor drones that may change human troopers for harmful frontline duties.

Little is thought concerning the effectiveness of the brand new spinning machine, however it’s one other instance of how either side of the warfare proceed to innovate. Within the battle’s early days, Russian troops fitted their battle tanks and armored automobiles with metal cages, nets, and spikes to extend survivability in opposition to small drone assaults.

The tactic was initially mocked, however has since unfold even to militaries exterior Ukraine and Russia.

Nonetheless, the Courier is designed to hold a big payload, so it has house for the brand new weed whacker — a luxurious that battle tanks, armored automobiles, and weaponized drones do not get pleasure from.

Ukrainian bloggers reported in 2023 on a patent with an analogous idea, although this concept concerned a single, spinning fan mounted on the highest of a battle tank to guard in opposition to munitions.

In Might 2025, they posted photographs of one other machine that might shield automobiles similarly, with spinning blades on both sides.

A cited patent description mentioned the system was designed with the idea {that a} drone operator would have issue seeing the spinning blades.