Drones Transform the Frontline of Ukraine into a Safe Zone for the Wounded

• Medical evacuation in Ukraine is complicated by the active use of drones.
• Wounded individuals are now more frequently receiving injuries from FPV drones than from artillery fire.
• Evacuation teams are often forced to change their locations due to threats from drones.

In eastern Ukraine, the dark corridors of frontline medical posts may soon become a thing of the past. Medics, awakened from their sleep, are meeting to discuss yet another evacuation that involves a wounded person from Donetsk.

They are working with thermoregulation—performing heart compressions and transferring patients, while it is not always clear whether the soldier can be saved. The room is prepared when their body is wrapped in a white sheet.

They were unable to save him, noted the anesthesiologist, as the evacuation took a lot of time. By the time he reached the stabilization point, he was already dead.

This is not the only case, but part of a broader trend in the war, where medical evacuation is becoming increasingly complicated.

"Through drones, which can reach significant distances, safety exists for the wounded, as well as for teams trying to retrieve them," said Daryna Boyko, an anesthesiologist from the medical service "Ulf" of the 108th Brigade "Wolves of Da Vinci." "The main problem now is transportation."

At the beginning of the full-scale invasion, evacuation vehicles could get almost to the front, which gave the wounded a better chance of survival. Now, due to the mass use of drones with the first person view (FPV), which allow the operator to see the target before the strike, territories up to 20 kilometers from the front have turned into killing zones. Medics report that they have not treated artillery wounds for months, and most injuries now come from FPV drones.

Drones have become the most terrifying weapon, both due to their accuracy and because they lower the chances of survival for those who are already wounded, complicating evacuation.

The increasing use of FPV also complicates the relocation of the wounded between points, noted the commander of the medical unit of the 59th Brigade with the call sign Bugor, who spoke on the condition of anonymity. "Everything is becoming more complicated—my job has to be more mobile, the method of our work is changing, and the level of danger is changing too," he said.

When medical service personnel are forced to retreat, stabilization points are also often relocated. Over the last two and a half years, Bugor and his team have been relocated 17 times. They have maintained their previous position under the threat of FPV drones.

They aim to protect themselves and the wounded, doing everything possible to hold their position as long as possible. If they are forced to retreat further, the evacuation route for the wounded becomes longer—and for those in critical condition, this can be fatal," she said.

Tags: Ukraine/Technology