From FABs to FPVs: How Russia is Turning Ukraine’s Borderlands into a No-Man’s Land

Reports from the Main Directorate of Intelligence of the Ministry of Defence of Ukraine (HUR) point to a deliberate shift by Russia toward direct terror against civilians. The Russian command has issued explicit orders to its UAV units to intensify strikes on non-military targets throughout the border and frontline belts.

While "civilian life" has become increasingly nominal across much of Ukraine, border and frontline regions—Kharkiv, Sumy, Chernihiv, Zaporizhzhia, Kherson, Dnipropetrovsk, and Donetsk—face continuous, round-the-clock pressure. Russia’s overarching strategy focuses on total intimidation, infrastructure destruction, and rendering everyday civilian life completely impossible.

Targeted Hunting of Civilians: A Shift in Enemy Tactics

Specialized Russian units, including the "Rubikon" Center for Advanced Unmanned Systems, alongside frontline drone operators, have been instructed to conduct precision strikes on civilian transport. Targets include private cars, passenger buses, and trucks belonging to humanitarian missions or food delivery services.

The wider range of Russian civilian targets includes:

• Gas stations, warehouses, and logistics hubs
• Electrical substations and water pumping stations
• Mobile communication towers

To execute these operations, the Russian military deploys a broad spectrum of unmanned aerial vehicles: from FPV strike drones and "Lancet" systems to newer models such as the "Molniya," "Gerbera-seeker," and "Geran-seeker." Equipped with high-resolution optics, operators directly observe and target clearly marked civilian vehicles, public transport, and families.

"Human Safari" via FPV Drones

In Kherson, Beryslav, Nikopol, and border villages across Sumy and Kharkiv, FPV drone attacks on civilians have become systematic. Loitering hostile drones target any visible movement—a daily reality local residents describe as a "human safari."

In southern Kherson, municipal authorities regularly announce high-density drone danger zones, advising residents to stay entirely indoors. Citing the Ukrainian Air Force, local officials report that up to 2,000 Russian drones of various types attack Kherson every week.

Data from the Kherson Prosecutor's Office reveals the human toll of these drone tactics:

• 331 people killed and 3,161 injured specifically by Russian drone strikes.
• Total casualties in the region since the start of the full-scale invasion stand at 1,868 killed and 9,296 injured due to all forms of shelling.

With official rescue services overwhelmed, local authorities have begun training volunteer firefighter units from the remaining civilian population. In Kherson—a city of 280,000 prior to the invasion—less than a quarter of the population remains, with roughly 65% over the age of 60.

Russia's Major Failure in Kharkiv

Kharkiv remains the closest major metropolis to the Russian border, located approximately 30 kilometers from Russia’s Belgorod region.

Following the initial invasion attempts in February 2022 and the subsequent Ukrainian counteroffensive in September 2022 that liberated most of the region, Russian forces launched a new offensive in May 2024 to create a "buffer zone." This effort failed to bring Kharkiv within artillery range. Analysts estimate Russian forces currently control less than 5% of the Kharkiv region, relying on small infantry groups attempting border breaches.

Despite ground failures, Kharkiv experiences relentless aerial bombardment. In the final week of July 2026 alone, 24 attacks hit residential and municipal infrastructure, utilizing guided aerial bombs (KABs), missiles, and FPV drones.

Tools of Daily Destruction: KABs and Artillery

Heavy glide bombs (FAB-250, FAB-500, KAB-1500) fitted with guidance kits pose a constant threat. Launched from ranges of tens of kilometers, Russian aircraft drop these munitions outside the engagement zones of most medium-range Ukrainian air defenses. In towns like Vovchansk, Kupiansk, Orikhiv, Bilopillia, and Sumy, impact from KABs routinely levels entire residential blocks.

Border communities in Chernihiv, Sumy, and Kharkiv also endure daily shelling from Multiple Launch Rocket Systems (MLRS) like "Grad" or "Uragan" fired directly from inside Russian territory. Flight times from launch to impact range from a few seconds to a single minute, leaving civilians with almost no time to seek shelter.

This sustained bombardment has depopulated entire border zones. In the Sumy region, a 5-kilometer strip along the Russian border has been transformed into an uninhabitable wasteland. By the summer of 2026, severe infrastructure destruction forced the complete evacuation of 83 settlements, leaving behind empty villages and displacing over 56,000 civilians.

War on Grain: Socio-Humanitarian Consequences

Systematic attacks have dismantled the economic and civic framework of the borderlands. Most commercial enterprises within 30 kilometers of the border or front line have either closed or relocated.

The agricultural sector faces severe destruction from mined fields and direct attacks on farming equipment. During harvest seasons, Russian operators deliberately ignite grain fields using strike drones. Despite strong crop yields (3.4 to 5 tons of grain per hectare), fires caused by shelling have destroyed 2% of the harvest in Ukrainian-controlled areas of the Kherson region alone.