Czech Ministry of Defence interested in Ukrainian Shark drones

The Czech Ministry of Defence has published a photo report on the testing of unmanned aerial vehicles, including the Shark-M, a fixed-wing reconnaissance drone developed by the Ukrainian defence tech company Ukrspecsystems.

According to the report, the Czech Army tested several drones under extreme conditions, including scenarios involving active electronic warfare. In particular, the 53rd Reconnaissance and Electronic Warfare Regiment of the Czech Armed Forces took part in the trials. No further details were provided by the Czech Ministry of Defence.

Shark is the flagship product of Ukrspecsystems. The Shark multifunctional unmanned aerial system enables autonomous aerial reconnaissance, surveillance, object detection, and target identification from long distances and at high altitudes. The Shark-M drone has been on the market for several years and is one of the most widely used reconnaissance drones among Ukraine’s Defense Forces. This model is capable of flying for up to 4 hours over a range of up to 80 km (limited by communication range) and reaching an altitude of up to 3 km.

Based on the published photos, the tests included a new modification of the Shark-M, launched using a catapult. The flight range of the drone has been extended to 420 km, with an endurance of up to seven hours. The developers also reported an increase in the maximum communication range to 180 km.

Ukrspecsystems is a Ukrainian defence enterprise specialising in unmanned aerial vehicles and military electronics. The company’s product range includes the PD-2, Shark-M, Shark-D, and mini-Shark UAVs, along with compatible payloads and components.