Flash warns air defense crews not to wait for orders, as Russia is now hunting them with real-time-piloted Shaheds
A Russian online-controlled "Shahed" again struck a Ukrainian air defense position, Serhii "Flash Beskrestnov, an adviser to Ukraine's defense minister, says. He did not disclose which position was hit or the consequences, citing operational security.
Air Force spokesman Yurii Ihnat has confirmed multiple cases of Shaheds and Gerberas being guided live onto moving targets, such as mobile fire groups, NV reports.
Beskrestnov's instruction to crews — not to wait for orders from command — signals how quickly the threat is now moving.
Reconnaissance-then-double-strike method
According to Beskrestnov, the Russian algorithm runs in two stages. First, a passing Shahed or Gerbera conducts reconnaissance, checking whether the air defense position is in place and how often it relocates. Then comes a double strike: one target draws the crew's fire onto itself while a second drone attacks the position in the moment the crew is engaged.
The pattern fits the documented shift. Russia has been using mesh-networked, online-controlled Shaheds when operators inside Russia steer them via relayed radio links from hundreds of kilometers away — that scout Ukrainian electronic-warfare and air defense positions before striking, Ukrinform writes.
"Don't wait for orders"
Beskrestnov's message to air defense personnel was unusually direct.
"I ask everyone involved in air defense not to wait for commands from the command, but also to analyze the situation and think," he says.
His tactical advice is specific: "Please camouflage, change positions, watch for reconnaissance UAV flights."
"When a crew works on a target, someone nearby must always watch the turn for the presence of other targets nearby. Don't shoot just like that, don't reveal positions," he adds.
The warning carries personal weight. In April, Russian online-guided jet-powered Shaheds struck Beskrestnov's own home. He was wounded and said the strike had been a targeted operation to kill him.
