Russian schoolchildren are learning to build and fly drones, in response to a decree issued by Putin in 2023:
“I fully support the proposals made by our companies so that children can learn to operate, assemble, and design drones from school,” said Putin, quoted in state media TASS.
Putin mentioned the importance of the drone industry to Russia, but this is not the most significant aspect.
“The military angle in this training and education is probably the most significant,” Samuel Bendett, an expert Russian drones and adviser to the CNA and CNAS thinktanks, told me.
Schools are now teaching the new curriculum, and a new range of attack drones are being introduced for school use. How much of an advantage will this give Russia in the next war?
Russia’s Embattled Schools
Russian schools are in trouble, and the war economy is only part of the problem. A recent report by the Jamestown Foundation notes a chronic teacher shortage, with the number of teachers falling even as pupil numbers are rising. Many teachers are on the minimum wage of $225 a month and are forced to take on extra work such as cleaning just to survive.
In this environment, schools are being given additional subjects to cover. They must now teach ‘Fundamentals of Religious Culture’ — promoting traditional values and national identity — and ‘Fundamentals of Security and Defense of the Motherland’ including basic military training. This training, for Year 10 and 11 students, covers how to strip, clean, load and fire a Kalashnikov, as well as the essentials of drone warfare.
These subjects are pushing aside traditional lessons as there is no capacity to add more. The quality of the teaching is doubtful.
An assessment by the UK’s Ministry of Defence on Twitter/X cast doubt on how effective the new curriculum would be: “Russia’s renewed emphasis on military induction for children is largely an effort to cultivate a culture of militarised patriotism rather than develop genuine capability.” They did add though that “the addition of UAV [drone]
skills does highlight how Russia has identified the use of tactical UAVs in Ukraine as an enduring component of contemporary war.”
Teaching Drones
Bendett says that technical skills instilling patriotism is only one aspect.
“Putin is making sure that the next generation is as familiar with drone technology in general, “ Says Bendett. “He is making sure there is a ready pipeline of ‘drone-enabled’ workforce and cadres for the military, given a constant need for more and more drone pilots at the front today. And obviously, young students who can train to manage drone technologies for their country going forward,”
Putin has previously expressed the view that future wars will be decided by whoever has the strongest drone force. The idea that everyone should know about drones as well as assault rifles is a strong indication of where he sees the future of warfare.
However, the lack of teacher knowledge is an issue, because few have any experience of drone technology themselves. It is not something you can pick up from a book. Bendett says that the teachers will need to be trained first before they can start educating students.
“This is reminiscent of the Russian efforts to educate students on AI,” says Bendett. “That effort requires teachers to know about AI, and now there is an effort to educate teachers on that sophisticated topic, likely with mixed results.”
Meanwhile Russia is promoting drone awareness in children in other ways, down to children’s cartoons in which characters use their videogame skills to pilot drones delivering toys.
Other countries are slowly waking up to the idea of promoting drone-based activities among young people. The British Army organized FPV drone racing events for the first time last year. In the U.S. Drone soccer is gaining ground and the U.S. Air Force now sponsors FPV racing events. But there is nothing to match the nationwide involvement of Russian children who, in theory at least, will all leave school able to set up and fly drones. The obvious exception is of course Ukraine, where teenagers already learn the basics of drone operation.
A New Class Of Military Drone
There is certainly some corporate involvement. Putin’s announcement mentioned ‘proposals by our companies.’ and shortly after his speech drone company Geoscan put out the first approved school drone textbook. Russian drone makers likely see this as an opportunity to open up a new market and make serious money. Drone lessons will require enough drones for everyone to have a go
Several types of educational drone are already available in Russia, like this $1500 Base quadcopter for visual piloting. But the ideal school drone is a small, cheap device that can be produced in volume.
The Simbirsk Design Bureau, who produce several Russian FPV types used in Ukraine, recently announced a new model, the Piranya-5 mini-drone designed for training as well as military use.
The scaled-down Piranya-5 is based on a 5-inch frame rather than the 8-inch and 10-inch versions used in combat. But it boasts a top speed of over 100 mph and can carry a respectable 2-pound warhead with a maximum range of up to two miles . Its big brothers can carry twice the payload for several times the distance, but anything able to put a grenade through a window a mile away can still be useful in combat. The makers have not stated a unit cost.
The Piranya-5 is the drone equivalent of the ‘Light Attack Trainer’ aircraft which pilots train on before graduating to combat jets. In the early days of aviation, pilots would learn on old or obsolete models, but when there were not enough of these, new types were developed suitable for beginner pilots. These continue with aircraft like the A-29 Super Tucano, a prop plane used for both training and for attack missions in low intensity conflict.
A national standard drone which every teenager knew how to fly would be a major asset. Apart from giving a head start in learning more challenging drones, the training drones could be issued in wartime as short-range reconnaissance and light strike drones which any graduate could fly. And it will be a bonanza for the makers if they can sell millions to schools across Russia.
This is has probably not been lost on world-leading drone makers DJI, who recently launched the Neo, a similarly scaled-down model which still boasts advanced features like automatic subject tracking and happens to feature an FPVs mode and retails for under $200.
While training aircraft are too vulnerable for high-intensity war, training drones could be still useful.
“I think Piranha-5 will be used both for training and actual combat,” says Bendett.
Maybe the new U.S. President, encouraged by drone enthusiast Elon Musk, will demand a matching capability for America.
