Operators from the STRIX unmanned systems detachment of Ukraine’s State Border Guard Service destroyed a Russian Skat-450M reconnaissance drone on March 22, Wild Hornets, the Ukrainian interceptor drone developer, announced on X.
STING shoots down a $400,000 Skat-450M reconnaissance UAV 💥
Operators of the “STRIX” unit destroyed a rare drone equipped with optical and thermal imaging systems, used for deep aerial reconnaissance and guiding Iskander strikes. Throughout the war, only 10 to 20 of these UAVs… pic.twitter.com/0lIOK0pei2
— Wild Hornets (@wilendhornets) March 23, 2026
“Operators of the ‘STRIX’ unit destroyed a rare drone equipped with optical and thermal imaging systems, used for deep aerial reconnaissance and guiding Iskander strikes,” Wild Hornets said. “Throughout the war, only 10 to 20 of these UAVs have been destroyed.”
The Skat-450M belongs to the Skat family of fixed-wing reconnaissance unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) produced by Russia’s Kalashnikov Group. Equipped with optical and thermal imaging sensors, the platform is designed to detect and track targets in low-visibility and nighttime conditions.
Its primary operational role includes transmitting targeting coordinates to long-range strike systems, including Iskander-M tactical ballistic missiles. The STRIX unit valued the destroyed aircraft at approximately $400,000.
The intercept came five days after TASS reported that a Kalashnikov Group representative, speaking at the World Defence Show 2026 in Riyadh, stated that Skat-350M UAVs had identified and struck thousands of Ukrainian targets over two years of combat, including Leopard and Abrams tanks, Bradley infantry fighting vehicles, and High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS) launchers. The Skat-350M is a closely related variant within the same family.
Publicly available technical specifications on the Skat-450M remain limited, and the system is considered one of the least-documented reconnaissance platforms in Russian service. The STRIX unit stated the drone operates in temperatures from minus 45 to plus 45 degrees Celsius.
The Iskander-M’s continued use against Ukrainian territory was documented as recently as March 14, when the Ukrainian Air Force reported that Russian forces launched 13 Iskander-M ballistic missiles in a single overnight strike. The Skat-450M’s role in that targeting chain makes it a high-value intercept. These claims have not been independently verified by SOFX.
