# The Dope on Drones: For Discussions on Combat Drones on all Battlefields and civilian Use

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-dope-on-drones-for-discussions-on-combat-drones-on-all-battlefields-and-civilian-use/1030330>\
**Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\
**Created:** [May 23, 2026, 7:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-dope-on-drones-for-discussions-on-combat-drones-on-all-battlefields-and-civilian-use/1030330 "2026-05-23T07:36:35Z")\
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**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\
**Post date:** [June 18, 2026, 2:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-dope-on-drones-for-discussions-on-combat-drones-on-all-battlefields-and-civilian-use/1030330/42 "2026-06-18T14:01:05Z")

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From the main invasion thread, where it was starting to be a hijack:

> [@Russia invades Ukraine {2022-02-24} (Part 2)](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/russia-invades-ukraine-2022-02-24-part-2/973972/8111):
>
> > [@Russia invades Ukraine {2022-02-24} (Part 2)](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/russia-invades-ukraine-2022-02-24-part-2/973972/8109):
> >
> > Systems for shooting down flying objects have been using multiple barrels forever.
> 
> That works fine, when the flying objects you’re trying to down cost a million times as much as your ammunition. But any sensible drone-defense system needs to be pretty close to one kill per shot, and then needs to be able very quickly move on to the next target after that one shot, or you’re still losing.

> [@Russia invades Ukraine {2022-02-24} (Part 2)](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/russia-invades-ukraine-2022-02-24-part-2/973972/8112):
>
> How much are you calculating the cost of machine gun bullets?
> 
> And you expect the one shot from a gun will down any drone?

> [@Russia invades Ukraine {2022-02-24} (Part 2)](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/russia-invades-ukraine-2022-02-24-part-2/973972/8113):
>
> Video game targeting skills, apparently.  
> Not any actual familiarity with real life examples of unguided projectile-based air defense systems.

To be clear, I wasn’t saying that I thought that one shot, one kill was currently possible (though with fully computerized aiming, you might be able to get close to that). What I was saying was that, whether it’s possible or not, that’s the kind of economy you need to make an anti-drone defense practical. If shooting down a drone costs more than the drone itself does, then the side using the attack drones can just bankrupt you by throwing more and more drones at you. Or they throw so many that you can’t afford to shoot them all down, and some still get through. Or both.

This is especially true with the sort of drone warfare that Ukraine has been favoring. When you’re attacking fossil fuel facilities, all it takes is one incendiary getting through to the right spot to destroy the entire facility. One turret each on four flatbed trucks isn’t enough to stop every drone from getting through, and it only takes one. Net result, the refinery or whateveris still destroyed, except now Russia is also wasting money on the defense platforms, too.

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