Ukraine has unveiled a new unmanned military platform that combines naval warfare with air defense: a maritime drone capable of carrying and launching 27 air interceptors controlled by artificial intelligence.
The system, tested on the Dnieper River, was developed by the Ukrainian company MAC HUB in collaboration with the naval branch of the “Black Sea Legion” unit, part of the Ukrainian military intelligence service.
The new platform, named Katran X1.2, operates like an unmanned ship that can launch swarms of interceptor drones designed for the aerial destruction of Russian Shahed-type drones.
AI-controlled interceptors
According to the developers, 27 MAC Dead Fly interceptors, equipped with artificial intelligence systems capable of autonomously identifying targets, have been installed on board the maritime drone.
Drones can reach speeds of up to 380 km/h — considered sufficient for intercepting Shahed drones — and engineers are working on increasing the speed to 450 km/h, at the request of the Ukrainian army.
Ukrainian officials claim that the system responds to a tactic frequently used by Russia, which sends Shahed drones on low paths along Ukrainian rivers, including towards Kiev.
The coordination between the naval drone and the interceptors is carried out through a mobile command center located on land, connected through the MAC Mission Control system, which allows real-time management of all involved platforms.
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