Orlan-10 UAV
RussianOrlan-10
The Orlan-10 is Russia's primary tactical unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) used for reconnaissance, artillery spotting, and electronic warfare missions. Manufactured by Special Technology Centre (STC) in St. Petersburg, Russia has deployed thousands of Orlan-10s along the entire front line. It first became widely known when Ukrainian forces captured a unit and discovered it was largely built from commercially available Japanese cameras and other COTS components.
Primary Role
Reconnaissance, artillery spotting, communications relay, electronic warfare
First documented use in Ukraine: 2022-02-24
Specifications
| Range | ~120 km (radio control) |
| Endurance | ~16 hours |
| Speed | 90–150 km/h |
| Ceiling | ~5,000 m |
| Payload | EO/IR camera, SIGINT, EW modules |
| Weight | ~18 kg |
✓ Strengths
- •Long endurance — can loiter over area for 16+ hours
- •Small radar cross section — hard to detect
- •Multiple payload options — adaptable for different missions
⚠ Limitations
- •Built from commercial components — sanctioned/disrupted by export controls
- •Vulnerable to EW jamming of control link
- •Slower than jet-powered drones — vulnerable to MANPADS
Notable Use
When Ukrainian forces captured an Orlan-10, they found it used a Canon DSLR camera as its imaging sensor and a Chinese-made fuel pump. This exposed Russia's reliance on commercial components and led to export controls that complicated Russian drone production.
Ukraine War Context
Russia operates Orlan-10s across all front sections for artillery fire correction. Ukraine has shot down hundreds using electronic warfare, MANPADS, and small arms. The Orlan-10 + Lancet combination became Russia's primary reconnaissance-strike complex for targeting Ukrainian artillery.