The War in the Ukraine

plawolf · 2025-10-30T13:14:59-0400

Saw this clip, which is actually quite illuminating in showing just how hard it is to try to shoot down FPVs with shotguns.

In this case, it’s basically the peak possible performance from the shotgun side, since you have a world champion clay shooter, with top of the line competition grade Gucci shotgun, specialist ammo and ammo carrier. And I think most importantly, he is fresh and knows exactly when the drones are going to come.

I don’t think it would be an exaggeration to say that even this world champ would not be expected to last long in Ukraine if he was facing drones under realistic conditions where he is fatigued and strung out, his shotgun isn’t pristine any more and he is using regular mass produced ammo and he doesn’t know when and where a drone might be popping out from.

LawLeadsToPeace · 2025-10-30T13:33:59-0400

plawolf said:
Saw this clip, which is actually quite illuminating in showing just how hard it is to try to shoot down FPVs with shotguns.

In this case, it’s basically the peak possible performance from the shotgun side, since you have a world champion clay shooter, with top of the line competition grade Gucci shotgun, specialist ammo and ammo carrier. And I think most importantly, he is fresh and knows exactly when the drones are going to come.

I don’t think it would be an exaggeration to say that even this world champ would not be expected to last long in Ukraine if he was facing drones under realistic conditions where he is fatigued and strung out, his shotgun isn’t pristine any more and he is using regular mass produced ammo and he doesn’t know when and where a drone might be popping out from.

Also, do note how the FPV drone isn’t carrying any external load, so it is at its top performance as well. That makes a huge difference given how drones with external payloads have suboptimal flight characteristics.

plawolf · 2025-10-30T13:37:44-0400

LawLeadsToPeace said:
Also, do note how the FPV drone isn’t carrying any external load, so it is at its top performance as well. That makes a huge difference given how drones with external payloads have suboptimal flight characteristics.

The drones were carrying dummy RPG warheads. It’s not stated, but I assume those would be weighted, as otherwise what would be the point?

LawLeadsToPeace · 2025-10-30T13:50:22-0400

Atomicfrog said:
Surrendering or to lead the troops to counterattacks ? For the sake of life, it would be better to surrender. It’s a bloodbath after another.

If true, Syrsky shouldn’t even be there. He should be working on reorganizing the corps‘s to allow better cohesion and delegating tasks to his subordinates. It is clear that the negative aspects of Soviet leadership style (top down planning, inability to trust subordinate leadership) are still prevalent within the AFU.

Nonetheless, if he were to lead a counterattack to widen the gap for retreat, it may work. However, if he wants to retake the land conquered by the Russians, then that is just suicide.

plawolf said:
The drones were carrying dummy RPG warheads. It’s not stated, but I assume those would be weighted, as otherwise what would be the point?

Ah, I didn’t watch the whole thing. My bad. Then, yeah, the shotgun is practically a last ditch effort, which, to be fair, is a common sentiment among both sides.

LawLeadsToPeace · 2025-10-30T14:12:27-0400

plawolf said:
The drones were carrying dummy RPG warheads. It’s not stated, but I assume those would be weighted, as otherwise what would be the point?

Having watched the entire video this time and read the comments, the drones in the video were 5-7 inch drones with a dummy warhead. The 7 inch one with the load is easier to hit in this case. However, there are some commenters who are currently in the AFU saying that Russians typically would use 10 inch drones with a 0.5 kg load. In addition, according to them, the limitations of the FPV camera force pilots to fly low and slow for hunting purposes, but the load interestingly enough only limits the drone’s agility by a little. So, as always, while the video does act as a data point for countering drones, it isn’t a determinant one.

The War in the Ukraine

plawolf

Lieutenant General

LawLeadsToPeace

Senior Member

plawolf

Lieutenant General

LawLeadsToPeace

Senior Member

LawLeadsToPeace

Senior Member