Yelabuga drone factory
[6] By April 2024, Western sources reported the plant had already produced 4,500 Shahed drones,[14][13] and that, due to upgrades, the cost of production per unit has increased to around US$80,000.
[15] Russian soldiers are trained to operate the drones in Syria by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and the Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah,[13] each designated terrorist organizations by several nations.
Consequently, numerous employees, including managers, engineers, students, and manual labourers, have travelled to Iranian drone manufactories for training.
[13] The Wall Street Journal reported one event in which the businessmen rented a hall at a school in Kampala, the capital of Uganda, to pitch employment opportunities to young female students.
The pitch advertised a work-study program for skilled labour, offering a wage triple what the women would earn in Uganda, free accommodations, and a university diploma.
The Wall Street Journal also reported the tone and message of the work-study pitches were intended to be anti-colonial, "echoing some of the language of the Cold War and reflecting Russia’s attempts to use soft power to dilute Western influence in East Africa.
[4] Leaked data provided by Iran to Russia indicated that 90% of an Iranian Shahed-136's computer chips and electrical components are manufactured in the West, primarily in the United States.
[4] An investigation submitted by Ukraine to the G7 in September 2023 revealed Shahed drones are built with commercially available parts sold by companies headquartered in the United States, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Germany, Canada, Japan, and Poland.
[2] US officials later reported China had supplied Russia with military hardware in addition to optics, microelectronics and other dual-use materials that could be used in drones.
Ukraine reported that Russia sourced engines for their attack drones from the Chinese company called Beijing MicroPilot UAV Flight Control Systems.
[4] Since production has commenced at the drone factory in Yelabuga, Russian engineers have replaced both glue and Chinese electronics deemed inadequate, and have waterproofed and redesigned the airframe.
[14] Further improvements underway include an effort to make the Geran-2s capable of swarm strikes, in which the drones autonomously coordinate an attack on a target.
[22] In June 2023, the White House released a U.S. intelligence report revealing Iran was supplying Russia with materials to construct the drone manufactory, predicting it would be fully operational by early 2024.
Despite mounting evidence, president of Iran Ebrahim Raisi denied sending drones for use in the invasion, responding, "We are against the war in Ukraine.
[26] The Ukrainian report to G7, submitted in August 2023, further detailed the Iranian government was trying to "disassociate itself from providing Russia with weapons" and that "[Iran] cannot cope with Russian demand and the intensity of use in Ukraine.
