A year ago a Russian military blogger advised that their troops urgently needed shotguns to deal with an upcoming avalanche of Ukrainian FPV drones. Now drones are everywhere and Russians on the frontline are literally begging for shotguns as their jammers fail. Meanwhile the Ukrainians, who seem to be facing far fewer kamikazes, have been issuing shotguns and training their troops in how to use them to bring down drones.
Shotguns As Drone Stoppers
There are plenty of electronic jammers on both sides, but drone builders keep changing their operating frequencies and using jam-resistant radios, so the jammer that worked last week may not work this week, leaving troops on the ground exposed. Ukraine is now shipping so many FPVs they have enough to hunt down entire platoons of Russian footsoldiers and eliminate them one at a time.
Talking to Russian newspaper Lenta last month, retired Colonel Andrei Koshkin said that when electronic warfare fails, a shotgun can be the solution: “I have to say that even a simple shotgun that you go hunting with, which shoots a spray of shot, turns out to be more effective than a machine gun trying to shoot down a drone.”
Such weapons have been issued to some Russian units. Russian social media recently showed pictures of two soldiers credited with bringing down drones. The caption was illuminating though “The first is from the cover of the demining group, the second is from the protection of the Tor air defense system.” – in other words, both were assigned specifically to drone protection, so their role is to watch the skies, shotgun in hand, to protect their unit.
Both soldiers were armed with the 12-gauge Vepr-12 Molot shotgun, a semi-automatic weapon with a 5-round magazine.Other Russians are looking for improvised solutions to give a soldier the capability of a shotgun and assault rifle in one. For example, one video shows how an GP-25 underbarrel grenade launcher can be converted to fire a shotgun cartridge for drone defence.
Another improvised Russian solution involves an adapter fitted to the end of the barrel of an AK-74 assault rifle to fire a single grapeshot round which the developers say had a high probability of stopping an FPV drone at 30 meters/ 100 feet range.
“It’s a very responsible job to shoot down drones when everyone is hiding”
Ukraine has reportedly acquired 4,000 Escort BTS12 shotguns from Turkish company Hatsan for drone defense. The BTS12 is a bullpup design, another semi-auto, military-style weapon and which seems to have a reputation as a low-cost but solidly reliable shotgun.
Supplying weapons is only part of the solution, and the Ukrainian military runs courses in using shotguns effectively against drones.
A report in Ukrainian magazine Focus notes the importance of selecting the right size shot and the right sights for the job: firing has to be fast and intuitive, so complex super-accurate sights are a hindrance rather than a help. (There is special anti-drone shotgun ammunition with shot connected with a Kevlar tether like a bolas but this does not seem to have been fielded yet).
The Ukrainian soldier interviewed notes that shooting down drones is a full-time role which requires constant surveillance.
A piece in Armyinform in April describes a course given by an instructor who is a career soldier with long experience of hunting. He says that the men chosen for shotgun training were selected first from those with hunting experience and then from those with proven shooting skills. But he notes that the role also takes raw courage.
“It’s a very responsible job to shoot down drones when everyone is hiding,” says the instructor. “You have to have character.”
The instructor says that apart from practice at shooting fast-moving targets, there is also a strong safety aspect. In particular, shooters should not be tempted to try and pick up trophies.
“Don’t run after the drones to prove that you shot them down. Do not pick them up in your hands, do not pull the cat’s tail,” he says, noting the danger from unexploded or even booby-trapped drones. “Unfortunately, there have already been such cases.”
Shotguns can bring down ‘drop drones’ bombing from overhead as well as the omnipresent FPVs. The instructor praises the Escort’s rate of fire and says it can bring drones down at ranges of up to 120 meters. FPVs are difficult targets but the shotgun gives the best chance of survival.
“This is a very good chance compared to running, believe me,” says the instructor.
Move And Countermove
In future, one soldier in each squad may need to be dedicated to drone protection. Some commenters have suggested issuing lightweight weapons firing buckshot to all troops for personal protection. There have been some experiments with adapting the Ukrainian MSD-5, a five-shot handgun for flares and other low-velocity ammunition, as a last-ditch FPV defense.
At best though, shotguns are only a partial solution. In many cases, soldiers hit by FPVs do not even see or hear them coming. And both sides are fielding increasing numbers of FPVs with thermal imagers for night attacks. Without some form of night vision, a shotgun is useless, though snipers with night sights may have some success against larger drones in the dark.
And finally, if shotguns do become effective against FPVs, the drones will evolve in response. One U.S. company already makes an armored, “shotgun-proof” drone called The Widow which can shrug off a blast of buckshot.
Meanwhile, fleeing Russian soldiers keep begging for shotguns as FPVs target them one by one.
