Ukraine Uses Ground Drones To See Through Heavy Fog

Thick fog has been a major problem for drone operators on the eastern frontline, and Russian troops have used it to advance again and again. This week, according to Business Insider, the 93rd Separate Rifle Brigade said the weather almost gave Russia a perfect opening near the village of Rusin Yar, close to Pokrovsk.

Visibility around the city dropped for days. The sky turned into a gray wall that blocked the view of small reconnaissance drones. For Ukraine, that is dangerous. Drones are often the first warning that Russian troops or armored vehicles are on the move. When that early warning goes dark, assaults can hit Ukrainian lines by surprise.

Russian forces tried to use the bad weather to their advantage. According to the brigade, the fog gave the Kremlin a chance to rotate units and push toward Ukrainian positions while assuming Ukraine could not see anything coming. Russia has also been trying to encircle Pokrovsk, a key transport hub in the region. Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy said this week that defenders there might be outnumbered eight to one.

A Ukrainian drone pilot summed it up with a simple truth. Fog is fog. When a drone operator cannot see, there is no software trick that can solve the problem. That has been a constant issue all along the front.

Still, this time Ukraine had a solution on the ground.

UGVs Detected Russian Troops When Drones Could Not Fly

The brigade said it deployed several uncrewed ground vehicles as the fog thickened. These UGVs from Ukraine moved quietly into positions behind Russian assault teams. Instead of flying above the battlefield, the small robots from Ukraine stayed low to the ground and used their sensors to watch for movement.

According to the brigade, the robots spotted Russian columns making their way toward Ukrainian positions. One clip shared online shows what the unit claims is a UGV picking up the outline of a Russian armored vehicle through the fog. Other videos show first person view drones striking vehicles and dropping grenades after being guided to the target.

Business Insider could not verify the footage, but the unit said the UGVs gave its drone teams enough information to launch FPV drones with confidence. Even in heavy fog, the pilots could fly low and strike at close range because they already knew where the Russian troops were located.

Ground robots are becoming more common in the war. They come in many shapes and sizes and can handle tasks that used to require infantry, including reconnaissance, supply runs, and even direct support during assaults. Fog does not affect them the same way it affects drones. They can also stay hidden more easily and observe from cover.

This event shows how they can work with FPV drones. The UGVs detect movement. The drones deliver the strike. The combination creates a new layer of battlefield awareness, especially when the weather shuts down traditional aerial surveillance.

Heavy fog also changes Russian tactics. Ukrainian units have said that in recent weeks, the Kremlin has used the cover to push infantry teams forward in civilian cars, motorbikes, and even small trucks. Other times, Russian troops move in very small groups of two or three soldiers to avoid detection. Ukrainian troops said this weekend that these small infiltration teams remain a problem even as large assaults continue.

The 93rd Brigade said that having ground robots watching the battlefield allowed it to spot both large and small groups of soldiers, even when flying drones was nearly impossible.

Weather Keeps Shaping The Ground War In Ukraine

Fog has been a recurring enemy for drone operators on both sides. Ukraine has shifted much of its battlefield awareness to small drones, and when those drones cannot fly, an entire layer of defense disappears. Ukrainian pilots have told reporters many times that there is still no reliable solution for bad weather.

This week was another example. Russian troops used the fog to push deeper into the Pokrovsk region, forcing Ukrainian units to scramble. The weather helped Russian infantry and armor move without being spotted. Ukrainian drone makers and pilots have said that the only reliable fallback during fog is steady artillery fire to break up assaults before they reach defensive lines.

Even so, the 93rd Brigade showed that new tools can help fill the gap. UGVs can scout during bad weather, hold positions without fatigue, and reduce the risk to soldiers. As the war pushes deeper into winter, robotics on the ground may take on an even larger role.

Drone pilots in the region said that Russia continues shifting between large mechanized pushes and smaller infiltration teams. Fog, snow, and low cloud cover will likely make this pattern even more unpredictable. Any system that can see through those conditions offers a major advantage.

DroneXL’s Take

Fog has always been one of the hardest problems for drone crews on the battlefield. Ground robots could become the missing link when aerial drones cannot fly. This is a glimpse of how future drone teams might work, with UGVs feeding targets to FPV pilots in real time. If Ukraine continues refining this partnership, it could reshape how drone warfare works during winter months when visibility is at its worst, and maybe, change or finish this war once and for all.

Photo Credit: Youtube LandForcesOfUkraine, Facebook 93-тя ОМБр Холодний Яр.