From humble beginnings as makeshift artillery spotters to jerry-rigged single explosive bombers, drones have diversified into various new roles, including trench breaching hunter-killers and tank killers. However, other battlefield areas have also changed to counter the rise of drones and use them in new roles that were unclear at the start of the war.
This has included a true cat-and-mouse evolution of electronic warfare to new tactics and modifications for more traditional equipment like armored vehicles. Given the coming change in administration in the United States and growing war-weariness in other principal Ukrainian backers in Europe, this is a distinct possibility. the current drone industry in Ukraine will likely shift gears to a mixture of more civilian applications or, of course, military exports. The former will likely revolve around using lessons learned in the conflict to apply to agricultural, logistics, surveillance, and search and rescue-type roles. From a military perspective, Ukraine’s drone industry will likely leverage its experience in drone asymmetric warfare against a far stronger and larger enemy. Therefore, it will find itself uniquely positioned to consult and supply nations with smaller defense budgets worldwide. This would likely mean its reconnaissance, kamikaze, and electronic warfare innovations could become a blank check for Ukrainian suppliers. Counter-drone technologies will also be an important area of continued research and development for Ukraine (and, of course, Russia). Outside of the leading players in the war, many nations around the world will continue to take drones “more seriously” and integrate them more into their existing military doctrine