By Dylan Malyasov
The remains of an Orion drone — also known by the project name Inokhodets – have been found in Ukraine’s southern Kherson region. The Ukraine Weapons Tracker OSINT group reported that a rare Russian combat drone was armed with at least one KAB-20 guided aerial bomb. “Though this loss is not recent, it appears to be undocumented,” tweeted the group.
The Orion is a Russian medium-altitude strike drone designed for air reconnaissance and combat as a carrier of bombs and missiles. It is the first to enter regular operational service with the Russian military.
The base configuration of Orion features a range of roughly 250 kilometers. He can reportedly carry up to four guided bombs with a maximum payload of 200 kg. The drone’s upgraded Orion-RU variant is bigger, slightly faster at 295 kilometers per hour, and can carry up to 450 kg of munitions.
The Oryx open-source intelligence site has visually cataloged four lost Russian Orion drones in Ukraine. The total number is likely much larger.
