Why Russia's Newest Drone Crashed

• 8.07.2025, 22:55

New details from journalists.

The new Russian Altius attack and reconnaissance drone in Kazan was "shot down" by the Russians using their own REB means, and the navigation system praised by the developers missed by a kilometer during the second landing approach.

This was reported on July 8 in the publication Defense Express.

According to the developers of the Altius (another name is Altair), working at the Ural Civil Aviation Plant, "unidentified external REB means" disrupted the drone's satellite navigation.

"In order to approach the landing, it was necessary to bring the device on a second circle. The landing was carried out in inertial mode, an emergency situation occurred," the Russians noted.

At the same time, as the publication notes, the Altius drone fell in the dacha cooperative Dubki - not far from the runway of the Kazan Aviation Plant.

"Recall that this is the same plant that once produced and now assembles from Soviet modifications and modernizes the Tu-160 and Tu-22M3. But it is also, or rather its KAPO-Composite division, responsible for the production of UAVs," Defense Express reported.

The publication noted that judging by the Russians' statements, the Altius drone was not equipped with an interference-protected satellite navigation system, such as Kometa-M.

"For some reason, this UAV does not have it. Or it failed, which for its part means a very targeted suppression of Altius by Russian REB units," Defense Express reported.

More than that, the publication noted, another analog navigation system - the inertial BINS-SP-2 - did not work on the drone. It was developed at the Moscow Institute of Electromechanics and Automation specifically for the Su-57 fighter and was equipped with laser gyroscopes and quartz accelerometers.