“Pour it out, grind it and lay it down.” The Russians want to “print” drones on the front. They will use waste

Russian engineers are working on a drone that will be manufactured using 3D printers from elements available directly at the front, reports the state-owned Russian news agency TASS. The Spektr design office is responsible for developing a new model of unmanned aerial vehicles. This project would allow the Russian military to mount drones in the combat zone, rather than in factories far from the front.

Russians want to print military drones from recycled materials. “Grind, Print and Fly”

– We are currently assembling vehicles with a range of up to 30 kilometers. Flight tests of the prototype are planned for December. Drones will be able to be constructed using 3D printing. Soldiers will be able to use industrial printers measuring one meter by one meter, which will fit in any passenger car, and then print on the front – explained Andrei Bratenkov, executive director of the design office, in the media.

The advantages of the new technology developed by the company are not only to increase the army’s freedom in the production of drones, but also to significantly reduce costs. – Our machine will be able to print not only from granules, but also from plastic remnants. In other words, from recycled materials. – Pour into the crusher, grind, print and fly: a kind of waste-free production – explained Bratenkov. Russian media report that the drone’s payload will be 10 kilograms, and the final production cost of one model will be less than 1.5 million rubles (approx. PLN 70,000). For comparison, most drones available on the market cost from 4 to 12 million rubles (from approximately PLN 180,000 to approximately PLN 535,000).

War in Ukraine. 3D printers serve both sides of the conflict

The project by Russian engineers will not be the first example of the use of 3D printing technology during . In August, Ukrainians managed to develop shoes that protect soldiers from the explosions of certain anti-personnel mines. Thanks to the use of 3D printers, it was possible to significantly reduce their production costs and increase the availability of this protection. A similar one was allegedly used in the production of Ukrainian bombs.

In September, the American portal also reported that Spee3D had provided Ukrainian soldiers with the necessary equipment. In Poland, training was also conducted on printing metal spare parts for weapons and other types of soldier equipment. Engineers noted that this form of production could also prove to be extremely beneficial in the case of older military equipment whose manufacturers no longer supply spare parts.