Ukraine's Sky Defenders in Sumy Face Relentless Drone Onslaught

Key Takeaways

Ukrainian soldiers in Sumy use World War I-era weapons to combat modern Russian drones, facing a relentless technological disadvantage.
Russian forces deploy Iranian-designed Shahed drones in massive waves, often evading detection by flying above cloud cover.
Daily drone attacks create a repetitive 'Groundhog Day' experience for defenders, with many evading fire despite nightly deployments.
Drones targeting Sumy frequently head toward Kyiv, causing significant casualties, such as 30 deaths in a single attack.
The conflict has severe human costs, including civilian tragedies, and ongoing threats like Russian troop buildups and Putin's 'buffer zone' plan.

In the northeastern region of Sumy, Ukraine, a small group of soldiers emerges nightly from the treeline to confront a relentless enemy: Russian drones. Armed with weapons dating back to World War I, these defenders face an unequal battle against 21st-century technology. The region, which borders Russia, has become a critical frontline in Ukraine's ongoing conflict.

Commander Jaeger, leading a mobile fire unit from Ukraine's 117 Territorial Defence Brigade, monitors a screen displaying clusters of red dots—each representing an Iranian-designed Shahed drone. On one recent evening, 30 such drones were detected in the skies over Sumy and the neighboring Chernihiv region. "They come in massive waves, often flying at different altitudes," Jaeger explained. "When there is heavy cloud cover, they fly above the clouds, and we can't see them."

As darkness fell, flatbed trucks equipped with heavy machine guns were deployed to a clearing, with gunners scanning the skies. The drones, barely visible, sliced through the air with a distinct whirring sound. Soldiers opened fire, sending tracer rounds streaking across the night, but many drones evaded their efforts. "It's the same thing every single day, over and over again," Jaeger said. "For us, it's just like Groundhog Day."

The unit, composed of locals including a farmer and a builder, is tasked with defending not just their hometown but all of Ukraine. Many of the drones targeting Sumy are en route to Kyiv, where Russia launched over 300 drones in a single night, overwhelming the capital's air defenses. By morning, six locations had been hit, and the death toll eventually climbed to 30.

Despite the relentless attacks, moments of humor provide brief respite. "You'll know when the next drone is coming when that short guy gets nervous," Jaeger quipped, pointing to a teammate. Yet, the reality of their mission weighs heavily. "The worst thing is that years are passing by," said Kurban, a builder in the unit. "We have no idea how long all this is going to last."

In the background, Sumy's fields, dotted with concrete "dragon's teeth" to halt tanks, stand in stark contrast to last autumn's successes when Ukrainian forces captured territory in Russia's Kursk region. However, by May, President Zelensky warned of 50,000 Russian troops massed near Sumy, and over 200 villages in the region were evacuated as shelling intensified. Russian President Vladimir Putin has since spoken of creating a "buffer zone" along the border, raising fears of an imminent assault on Sumy.

The human cost of the conflict is starkly evident in stories like that of Margaryta Husakova, who lost her mother, sister, and uncle in a drone attack on a civilian bus. Pulled from the wreckage with a shattered arm, Margaryta's story underscores the brutality of a war that shows no signs of ending. As Ukraine enters its fourth summer of full-scale conflict, the defenders of Sumy remain steadfast, their resilience a testament to the unyielding spirit of a nation under siege.