Everything about SLAVIC in one video! New reconnaissance drone from Vyriy!

Speaker 1

We need to take off. We just move the left stick to the bottom right corner. Hold for two seconds. And we take off.

Speaker 2

Friends, these are unique shots right now. You see me through the lens of our camera, and you also see me through the camera of the Ukrainian reconnaissance drone "Slavik", which is an alternative to the Chinese "Mavic". This is a large presentation from the company "Vyri", and we will tell and show you what this drone consists of, how it was developed, and what the company is working on right now.

Speaker 1

I finally hold in my hands a solution that will allow us to move away from Chinese drones, switch to a Ukrainian manufacturer, and save the lives of our pilots. When developing this product, our main goal was that the pilots who currently fly "Mavics" could pull back as far as possible from the front line. We are doing this through better communication, which will allow them to pull back, and through air time, which we have almost twice as much as a regular "Mavic". And this is "Slavik". The camera has 2K quality, we have a 10x optical zoom and a 30x hybrid zoom. As of today, everything we see on it was created based on the needs of the front. We contacted military units, asked what their critical points were, what needed to be improved, what needed to be implemented, and how to make the reconnaissance drone they actually need. The most frequent request is flight time and distance, as Chinese solutions today in their standard configuration do not cover their needs. We developed the airframe. Our main idea was to save the lives of Mavic pilots, and we are trying our best to achieve this. We achieve this through longer air time, greater flight distances, and better radio communication. Its air time is 90 minutes or an hour and a half. The maximum one-way distance we achieved was 60 kilometers; we took off, flew 60 kilometers, and hovered. In reconnaissance scenarios, we flew 25 kilometers, hovered for 25 minutes, conducted reconnaissance, and flew it 25 kilometers back.

Speaker 2

Were Mavics used from the beginning, for example, for fire correction? Yes. In such a scenario, how does it work and for which types of weaponry can it be used as a spotter?

Speaker 1

Look, it can be used as a corrector for any type of weapon whose impact we can see. Meaning, everything we see on the camera, or some destruction of something thanks to this weapon, or the blast of this weapon's shell, we naturally see in our camera. We have a good gimbal for this, which stabilizes the camera well; even some gusts of wind will not interfere with it. Moreover, it has a visual positioning system that is better than what the Mavic has today. Therefore, it is more stable in the air, and we can more stably see the image we need. We have completely moved away from the concept of having GPS on board. In our Slavik, there is no GPS module on board. Positioning occurs thanks to the visual positioning module located at the bottom. The Mavic also positions itself thanks to its module, but their solution works worse than ours. Because the main goal of the Mavic is to have GPS satellites and position itself by them. And the visual positioning module in the Mavic is already a backup. In ours, however, the visual positioning module is the primary one. And that is why we placed maximum emphasis on it, so that it works well and correctly. This is a Ukrainian solution.

Speaker 2

Another way to use the Mavic is drops?

Speaker 1

Yes.

Speaker 2

It is predicted that Slavik can also send.

Speaker 1

We won't reveal all the secrets. As of today, we position the drone as a scout. But we understand that when these drones go to the army by the thousands, there are good engineers in the units who will attach a dropper to it, put a relay on it, and they will use it as needed. But as of today, the dropper on the Mavic is, let's say, a crutch, which is made because we have a photosensor that detects the activation of the bottom backlight. This does not always work correctly. We have an absolutely open system. Our system is built on ArduPilot. Workshop pilots who know how to use it will be able to fully configure it. Overall, we are not considering the dropper option right now, but we can connect a dropper here, connect it, hypothetically, right here, to the USB port. And it will work correctly because we don't have the photocell that is present in the Mavic dropper. Therefore, this system will be, first, reliable, and second, it will definitely work.

Speaker 2

Another application scenario is a repeater carrier? Can Slavik be a repeater carrier?

Speaker 1

Yes. That's why we pre-tested this point immediately. We tested Slavik with additional weight. This also applies to drops. Its airtime and flight time is one and a half hours, 90 minutes. With an additional kilogram of weight, it was 50-60 minutes. With the relay, it was 60 minutes. For the relay, we also installed our solution from Vyrii – this is MARA. A very good relay that is widely used at the front. And we put a horn antenna on it. Like this one, which created significant wind resistance. With the horn antenna and our relay, it stayed aloft for 60 minutes. There is no automatic takeoff as such, but again, returning to the fact that we work on ArduPilot and we can easily do this. Why isn't it there? Because we haven't heard of such a need from the front. Perhaps some units need it, but most did not mention such a need. Automatic landing works for us normally and very well. This solution already exists. On the bottom, in addition to the positioning module, there is also a small LiDAR. When the pilot returns to their home position or to a point where they want to land, it is enough for them to press the LAND button on the remote. The board will start, the LiDAR will engage, and it will land gently and calmly on its own.

Speaker 2

A Ukrainian alternative to Mavic, how Ukrainian is it in terms of components?

Speaker 1

It is as Ukrainian as possible in terms of components. To date, only two of our modules are non-Ukrainian. These are our camera and one of the communication modules. Everything else is produced entirely in Ukraine. Everything, absolutely completely. The only thing is that we are currently using test motors. We are looking for the best solution. Today we will bring a board without a Ukrainian motor, but when the board goes to the military, it will be completely Ukrainian with Ukrainian motors.

Speaker 2

Ukrainian engines are, accordingly, of the class. That is, it is not a problem.

Speaker 1

No problem, yes. Overall, any solutions that we see on the table today, already in the assembled Slavik, we have prepared them in the tens of thousands. We looked for Ukrainian manufacturers, Ukrainian solutions. Because we understand that even if we manufacture ten thousand drones and saturate the front and the military with them, we, as the manufacturer, also bear responsibility for repairs, for components. Therefore, we have worked through all these scenarios. Any solution that is on the table is scalable, it is in the tens of thousands. That is, hypothetically, if a luch breaks somewhere in a unit, there will be absolutely no problem ordering this luch. Or we will provide them, as the manufacturer of these cameras, there are tens of thousands. And even if a unit does not want to contact the manufacturer, or has some problem, or some urgency, the unit can easily order this camera. Any solution that exists today is accessible. And that is the most important thing. Unit workshops will not have problems with components, which they currently have with DJI products.

Speaker 2

What about the case itself? How was it developed? Why this shape? How is it assembled overall?

Speaker 1

Decision on the frame. The entire frame consists of carbon, carbon tubes, or 3D printing. The main load-bearing parts are carbon tubes, which take on the rigid load. We have a carbon plate on top. Beyond that, these are all parts—some carbon and some 3D-printed. These are also specially developed solutions. If we compare Slavik and Mavic, Mavic's entire frame is made by a molding process. I think all military personnel understand that if you damage a Mavic frame somewhere, you have two options. Either buy another Mavic, crash it somewhere else, and [take] its intact frame. Or install non-genuine components, meaning copies of the Chinese solution. As of today, it is impossible to purchase a Mavic frame in Ukraine. And overall, repairing a Mavic using their solution, going to their workshop, repairing it in Ukraine, and in most countries, is an unavailable feature. Ours is all 3D-printed and carbon, so that, first, there is a sufficient supply of both carbon and 3D printing. That is, we will be able to order, supply, and repair it, and workshops will be able to do the same. Second, these are simple solutions. Essentially, only a 3D printer is needed and cutting a carbon tube according to a certain template, and any workshop can handle this.

Speaker 2

Battery.

Speaker 1

Let's talk about the battery. Also, like all the solutions, the battery is an available solution. This is a lithium-ion battery with a solid-state electrolyte type. It is not some kind of critical component; it is available. Why solid-state as an electrolyte? To enable a smaller size and longer operating time. Our battery is 40 amps and 40 thousand milliampere-hours. It is removed very simply, very easily, and installed. We press the latches and simply pull it out easily. Just as easily, we pop it right in.

Speaker 3

We manufacture the battery housing.

Speaker 1

The solution must be convenient for the military. To avoid any wiring, we already have a ready-made case. To set up the battery, it is enough for us to simply insert it inside and just put it into the drone. And it is already ready for use.

Speaker 2

What is included in the complex? What will the military receive in this complex?

Speaker 1

The UAV complex will consist of 5 aircraft, 10 batteries, a ground control station, a mast, and antennas. And there will be two spare parts kits of spare parts, spare propellers, as well as a controller and all the necessary architecture for operation. That is, the UAV complex will fully cover the needs of the unit or group. We will have two spare parts kits. The spare parts kits will include things like separate additional propellers, additional batteries, and additional battery charging adapters. Also, by the way, the complex includes the charger itself. This is the first spare parts kit, nominally. The second spare parts kit consists of spare arms and some complex connectors that would be difficult for the unit or workshop to manufacture. We took maximum care of the military so that the military would not have to look for solutions, as was always the case with Mayuk, where you had to come up with something yourself.

Speaker 2

Show how it folds, in terms of the rays folding and unfolding. That is also important, its overall volume, how much space it takes up.

Speaker 1

Okay, let's disconnect the battery. It's very easy to do. We've removed the battery; let's move on to folding. This is done very simply. We just take hold of the arms. Since we have carbon tubes, we don't need to worry about their integrity; we definitely won't damage them. You can hold them by the edges, but we recommend holding them by the outer edges to increase the angle of pressure. Just take it, you can also gently press it against yourself, and just like that, one-two. It's very easy to fold the arms. It's absolutely the same with the rear arms. We also have small antennas on them. These are not legs; these are the antenna housings themselves. We brought the front arms together; here we were folding them. We take hold of the rear arms. And also very easily, one-two. We bring them toward the body, rotating the propellers. This is how it looks when folded.

Speaker 2

Did you say antenna housings?

Speaker 1

Yes, you noticed correctly. This is the antenna housing for us. And in general, if we look at multi-rotor reconnaissance drones, in the Mavic they are also all called legs. In reality, these are antenna housings. We use a non-commercial solution. The EW saturation in our solution is significantly lower. For the leg itself, we use this 3D-printed part. It is printed from a special radio-transparent printing material. It looks like this.

Speaker 2

What is its weight together with the battery?

Speaker 1

The drone together with the battery will weigh 4.9 kg. The battery will account for the most weight. But it is also the largest power source, which, in fact, gives us more air time than the MAVIC. Therefore, the battery will be larger than the MAVIC's. In total, the drone itself will weigh 4.9 kg. The MAVIC weighs less. But the MAVIC has an air time of 40 minutes. We have 90 minutes in the air. This is what our remote control looks like. And for pilots, it will look very familiar. One of the principles by which we built the entire architecture for our Slavik is accessibility and an easy transition. A pilot who takes our remote control in their hands will find this remote maximally similar to the remote that pilots currently use on DJI equipment. The sticks are maximally similar. The sticks for camera tilt and zoom are maximally similar. The pilot will have no questions at all about how to use it. When the pilot turns on the remote, even the boot interface is similar to the Mavic's, so that pilots need minimal time to retrain.

Speaker 3

Even switching the remote on and off

Speaker 1

it happens the same way as on DJI, one short for life, one long. It turned off. Now we'll wait a little, we'll turn it back on now.

Speaker 2

Is the software itself your development?

Speaker 1

Yes, it is absolutely our own development. Now we will turn on the remote, and I will explain in a bit more detail. Both regarding our solution and how we developed this solution to make it as accessible and intuitively clear to pilots as possible.

Speaker 2

And the remote itself, is it some kind of commercial solution? Yes,

Speaker 1

This is a commercial solution, but it is not manufactured by China. Let's imagine a pilot who has taken our remote control in their hands for the first time. Perhaps he hasn't come [for training], this is our fast retraining, which takes literally just one day, and in reality, even a couple of hours. The pilot takes the remote in their hands; they've seen the power button, they've worked with DJI equipment, and they know that they need to do one short press, one long press. The remote begins initialization and startup; this takes approximately 20-30 seconds. Now the remote is on; I think about 30 seconds have passed. We see the remote's desktop, and again, there will be no transition problems for pilots because we have an Android shell, just like DJI remotes, meaning that overall, it won't be a problem for the pilot to install apps. This is a completely familiar space for them, which they have already been using for many years. DJI has its own app; we developed our own app completely from scratch. It is called VeryLink. And this is how the app looks; in terms of accessibility, we've made the telemetry as familiar as possible. Pilots fully understand the indicators they see. They see a familiar map, they see a familiar compass, they see familiar button widgets and can use them. One of the good solutions we implemented is that the pilot doesn't need to press a button on the aircraft or a button on the remote to connect them to each other. We use a bind phrase, which is located on the aircraft and in the ground control station. Once powered on, the aircraft will automatically connect and bind to the remote. Why is this a good solution? Because today there is a very big problem with pilots reaching their positions. And the biggest problem isn't even reaching the position, but supplying them with new aircraft if they lose their current ones. Our solution allows two pilots, in different locations, to control one aircraft using two different remotes. That is, in a scenario where pilots sitting at a position do not have additional equipment delivered from their unit, other pilots can drive within 30 kilometers of them. Meaning, if a pilot is 15-20 kilometers from the front, other pilots drive 30 kilometers toward them. This means the pilot is almost 50 kilometers from the front. He can fly the Slavik through the air to the position where the pilots who use it on the battlefield are located. The pilots will take over control and will be able to operate the Slavik. They will be able to land it, retrieve it, and use it.

Speaker 2

So, what do we see here?

Speaker 1

We turned on the drone, we have an image from the camera, we see the image from the camera, we see the camera, in which we can clearly, thanks to our algorithm, see the drone's position in Halaiv without GPS, absolutely. We can adjust the camera, or rather the map; we can remove it completely for the safety of the pilots. Then we see the drone's indicators: the mode in which it is operating, the battery charge, signal indicators, and the camera indicator. Overall, this is telemetry familiar to any Mavic pilot. We also have a track function, meaning that if the drone is aimed at an object, and that object is even moving, we press track, and the drone—the camera—will automatically track that object. And we also have a record button, with which we solved one of the fundamental problems of the Mavic. This is the fact that when pilots stream to the control station, they cannot simultaneously record the drone's screen. This is a major problem. We implemented recording through the app, meaning the pilot can simultaneously record and stream the broadcast.

Speaker 2

Recordings are needed precisely so that the saved video confirms the hit.

Speaker 1

Yes, absolutely correct. We also see the compass, compass readings, and the altitude of the drone in the air. We have distance readings from the point from which it took off. And again, we implemented this without the use of GPS. We have readings from the positioning system and via radio. Radio readings show the most accurate distance, as this is basic physics, and it actually works not even with a minimal error, but almost without error. Also regarding the important software, as I have already said many times, it is an open system that can be configured. By clicking here on Slavik, we can go to the drone configuration and change any parameters. Most of them may look unfamiliar, but these parameters are more for the workshops, which, at the request of the pilots, will do what they need. Also, if the pilot wishes, they can change certain parameters right in the air. For example, one pilot differs from another; some like to fly fast, while some want to fly slowly. And a pilot, taking the remote in their hands, taking off and noticing that their colleague had set a high speed, can change this parameter to suit themselves very easily, literally by pressing a few keys. Another interesting thing is that we have waypoint flight, which we are currently improving, also without the use of GPS. What does this mean? It means that we can tell the drone—we always know where the drone is—and we can tell it where to fly. And it will fly without GPS readings. Something that is also not present today in most reconnaissance multirotors. More like a mission planner on aircraft, or for comparison, on various bombers. That's it.

Speaker 2

In other words, this makes it easier for the pilot; if he is flying a long distance, it will simply be easier for him.

Speaker 1

control. Absolutely correct. In general, besides the fact that a pilot can set a reconnaissance zone point to which they can fly, and then the pilot who conducted the reconnaissance in the reconnaissance zone can take over control, he can press a button; it will appear when we release it. It is called RTL – Return to Land. And the aircraft will begin returning home on its own without using GPS readings. And this works as intended, indeed, and without any problems at all. Why was this RTL invented in the first place? This is our failsafe. In the event that the pilot fails to assess the radio horizon, or there are some obstacles that prevent a direct line of sight between the antenna and the drone, in the event that the drone loses connection, the drone climbs to its specified altitude, depending on what setting it has now. That is, if it is currently at 100 meters, it climbs to 250, and that is the maximum; it will not climb any further. If this altitude was not enough to restore a direct line of sight between the drone and the antenna, the drone turns around and returns home on its own without using GPS, as there is none. This works as intended; we have already sent our drone to units for testing. The units praised it highly, and one pilot from a unit even complained that even if you wanted to lose it, you wouldn't be able to. It will always come home on its own. The main logic is not for it to arrive and land, because there is a margin of error, and that is normal. Even with GPS, there is an error. In our case, the entire protocol is designed so that if the pilot loses control and video, the drone returns one, two, or three kilometers, and the pilot can regain control without losing the aircraft. And it also works exactly the same way under EW conditions. If some jamming occurs, the aircraft will return, and you will not lose the aircraft.

Speaker 2

Then you can rebuild the route in some other way

Speaker 1

to fly. Of course. And this will help you a lot with time in the air. Because, hypothetically, if a pilot is flying another reconnaissance drone, and its battery is 40 minutes, as we know, he simply will not have time to rebuild the route. Whereas we have an hour and a half, if you hit a zone somewhere that you cannot fly through, yes, your drone will return, you take control, and you still have a full hour of flight left, and you can fly around this zone.

Speaker 2

What is the remote connected to?

Speaker 1

Let me tell you a bit about our architecture. First, what we wanted to do—we are not the first who try to make a good multirotor reconnaissance drone. We took a very clear approach to the issue of convenience for pilots because, hypothetically, if we are comparing ourselves to Mavic and DJI, we need to do it better. We need to make it just as convenient as it is today. All connections for us—since we have a convenient remote control, and this is our solution, and not the use of third-party controllers that connect to a computer via a console and are difficult to configure. No, the pilot takes the remote, turns it on, and it is already ready to work. Then we use one Ethernet wire, which connects to the module, we call it the dugout module. Logically, because it is located with the pilot in the dugout. The cable we use—this is a very fundamental thing. We use a regular Ethernet twisted-pair cable. Why? Because if something happened to it, for example, if someone accidentally cut it somewhere, you can simply strip the wiring inside and connect them by the same color, and it will continue to work. The price of this cable is pennies, it costs up to 100 hryvnias, and it works. Coaxial cables, which were used on the Mavic, cost tens of thousands. And if something happens to it in the dugout, you will not be able to repair it in any way.

About the dugout module. How does it work in DJI now? DJI uses our antennas—AV Angel, AVenger, as some call them. This antenna has a battery built-in. If the battery dies during flight, the pilot, or his second pilot, the spotter-navigator, takes another antenna; he does a very scary thing that we want to avoid—he risks his life, and he runs to the antenna to change it. The logic of our product is to maximize the preservation of life. Therefore, we made the dugout module, and the pilot does not need to leave the dugout to power the antenna. Currently, we see the connection of our dugout module. We have certain outputs here. RJ45 for connecting the Ethernet cable, an XT60 output for power connection. And a very important thing—our battery is not a battery for the system. It is like an additional backup. If I turn it off now, we look at the remote, and nothing happens to us. As of today, on the mast module, we have a battery that lasts an hour and a half for hot-swapping. An hour and a half for hot-swapping is more than enough for anyone. Then, if we are not powering via XT60, we also made a Type-C output. For what? Because Mavic-users do not always have an EcoFlow at the position, and he can connect either to a power bank or to an EcoFlow, which he will always charge from a generator. And in this case, it is not mandatory for us to use an EcoFlow. We can simply power it via a Type-C cable. Even if something happened to the EcoFlow, it broke, it doesn't work. Pilots always have the option to connect, of course, a 6S2P battery. But Mavic-users do not carry these batteries with them. However, a pilot who flies a Slavik will always carry a Slavik with him. He will have a battery from the Slavik. And we worked through the scenario where you simply take a battery from the Slavik. An adapter for charging. And now we connect our battery. We have an indication, we see that it is charged, and it works. And besides its standard hour and a half of operation, we have this ordinary battery of his, with which he can operate for a couple of days.

On the map, we see the drone's position. Also on the map, we will see its flight track, meaning where and how it flew. And if the signal indicators drop slightly somewhere, we understand that perhaps the antenna is facing the other way. Today, it is enough for us to simply click on the drone on the map. And the rotation mechanism system will automatically turn the antenna toward the drone. We are already developing and testing a system that always understands where the drone is and tracks it automatically. That is, the pilot won't have to press anything at all.

Let's return to the dugout module. Here we have a regular RJ45 input. An Ethernet twisted-pair cable enters it. From it, we use what we see today—this is a 9-pin connector. Why? Because the wire itself is also an Ethernet cable, a twisted pair, based on the same logic that this part of us is located in the dugout and is in relative safety. This part of us is located outside and is, so to speak, in danger, because in the event of some arrivals, it can be damaged. A strike, for example. Since it is a twisted pair, pilots will be able to simply cut it from both sides, connect the wires, and it will continue to work. Today we see this 9-pin connector. In the future, we will use exactly the same regular RJ45 Ethernet twisted-pair connector, as some call it, and it will work like this. Then we have the wire. Let's go to the mast itself and the antenna.

We have come to our mast, we see our familiar twisted-pair wire, or Ethernet, as they call it. Now we will simply remove our antenna and our mast module, which is part of our antenna. Everything connects just as simply as on the dugout module. We simply plug the Ethernet into the ground station. These connectors are closed. What is this connector for? Because you can connect and use the drone, hypothetically, if the pilots went out to the training ground to test. They don't need to bring everything. He can take only the antenna along with the module, connect power here via Type-C or via a battery, and already use it. On top, we also have full moisture protection. This is what the module itself looks like. This dipole antenna is all directional so that the pilot can fly in. Even if he has flown past his position, he has coverage around him. Now the patch antenna itself—it already has a horizontal angle of 30 degrees, and a vertical angle of 40 degrees. That is, it is not omnidirectional. However, it gives us distances of 70 kilometers, which we can cover.

Speaker 2

Is this made in Ukraine?

Speaker 1

Absolutely. And all antennas, all vlogs, everything is absolutely of Ukrainian production. It looks like this. A very simple, very ergonomic, convenient solution. Because the greatest danger for the pilot is this moment of installation, setting up the antenna, the position. Overall, for us, this is done very quickly. We just need to fix this little clip on our mast or, perhaps, somewhere on a tree, depending on the mission conditions. After which, plug in one cable and you can return to the dugout absolutely without risking your life. The pilot can return to the dugout as quickly as possible. If he installed it on a mast, it will have a rotating mechanism. The pilot, sitting in the dugout—the rotating mechanism does not require an additional cable, an additional connection. Very often we see rotating mechanisms in Ukraine that require a Bluetooth connection, a Wi-Fi connection. In ours, absolutely everything—power, control, video, and the rotator—all goes through one cable, which is very easy to repair and, most importantly, is repaired in the field during the war. Need to take off. We simply move the left stick to the bottom right corner. Hold for two seconds. And we take off. We release the sticks, and as we see, the craft maintains its position, maintains its altitude, and everything is working normally. Meaning, as I said, even a child could fly it. If we want, we fly a bit forward. We can operate the drone quickly. If we look at the drone itself, right now it is standing in place, we can see its visual positioning. It is not drifting at all, it is absolutely stable, it is not moving at all. We can lower the camera, look below. We can center the camera.

Speaker 2

So, if we fly somewhere?

Speaker 1

Let's fly. Let's gain a little altitude and fly forward. Not fast.

Speaker 2

At what speed are we flying now?

Speaker 1

20 kilometers per hour. 40 kilometers per hour. 50. And let's say the maximum is 60 kilometers per hour. Even 65 kilometers per hour. If there is a slight tailwind, we can even accelerate to 70. But generally, the maximum UTTH is 65.

Speaker 2

This is all the property needed for work,

Speaker 1

Correct? Yes, absolutely correct. This is the case in which we transport the Slavik itself. And one battery for it. This is the case for the ground station and everything necessary for it. The antenna fits completely, you have one case. And for the remote control, there is also such a small case. That is, these three cases completely cover the issue of moving into the position, leaving the position, and all transportation.

Speaker 2

Can you throw a case from the bomber?

Speaker 1

Yes, our cases are shockproof. The internal packaging is an insert that is perfectly fitted to the shape of Slavik. Of course, don't overdo it. But if it falls, even many times, nothing will happen to it.

Speaker 2

Likewise

Speaker 1

Absolutely all cases, they all come with a soft insert. And they are designed for the possibility that it might fall somewhere, might be damaged somewhere. At the same time, it will not damage what is inside it. The hardest part of development was to work through all the scenarios, test all the flights, check the entire structural integrity, so that everything worked well, so that it worked efficiently. And most importantly, for it to work in the military. Because some manufacturers who test their products in Kyiv do not take into account the radio frequency saturation in the combat zone and the limited resources for deploying antennas and the like. Therefore, we worked through all these options so that a drone that reaches the front line is already immediately prepared, thought out, constructed, and developed for the front line.

Speaker 2

Furthermore, you said that this is a modular platform, it can be changed, plus the software is an Open Source solution. Is the development of Slavik already completed?

Speaker 1

As of today, the development of Slavik is not complete. In the sense that it will be improved. And I think that this is a process that will be with us for years to come. The pace of everything—that there will be new versions of Slavik, there will be improvements. We chose ArduPilot because, rightly, it is an open solution. Because ArduPilot is a familiar ecosystem for our workshops, pilots, wing units, and more. If we make a closed system, we will do what the most popular manufacturer, DJI, did; we will create a problem that the military will encounter and that the military will have to solve. We understand that the military are also enthusiasts who are very good at development, that they will engage in this, especially their workshops. And we do not want to create obstacles for our military on this path.

Speaker 2

What will happen next with Slavik? Where to move forward? Because DJI is constantly releasing new iterations.

Speaker 1

Yes, there is a very important point here that DJI releases new iterations simply as a product without improving some specific functionality. We already have an avoidance module under development today, specifically against hovering and drops from above. This is currently the biggest loss for reconnaissance aircraft—an enemy aircraft simply hovers and drops something. We will have an integrated camera that will warn the pilot that [someone] is hovering over them; it will output an image, and you will clearly see that there is currently some threat. And then in the next iteration, there will be an improvement: it will partially evade on its own, depending on the pilot's choice. The pilot can choose whether they evade themselves or the system does it instead of them. We already have multi-channel communications in progress, meaning we have certain channels as of today. We want to expand the range so that it cannot be jammed even by EW. Even if EW jams it, it will return on one frequency band. We will make it multi-band, so such a scenario will not happen at all. Then we are making a remote control system. As I have said repeatedly, we have an RG45 Ethernet connector here, there, and there. As you understand, wherever there is Ethernet, there is remote control; everything will work. Also, the integration of our VPS, which will work with Slavik, is already in progress; they will be integrated into it. Here, the most important thing is the scenarios for their application. We already have experience working with beacons in Ukraine, but what we are moving away from as much as possible is risking lives. Beacons will be used with Slavik in the following way. And this, by the way, is a question about drops. Three beacons will be enough for Slavik. But since it flies far, no one will go there on foot for safety reasons. Therefore, Slavik can fly to some tree, drop the first beacon, then drop a second beacon on some building, and on the third ruin drop… the third beacon, yes. First, second, third. Slavik can drop beacons for itself. These beacons will be disposable. No one will risk their life for the sake of a single little beacon. And this is very critical, and this is very important. Overall, the development of Slavik is not standing still. I gave you a couple of examples of what is already in progress. What we want to do by investing the most time and ensuring that it will actually work well. We are currently spending maximum resources on testing and preparing all these new application scenarios. We have already handed over our aircraft to several units for testing to get their feedback and make the corresponding improvements. And through this, to find out that it is already ready for war. The answer is yes, it is already ready. There are improvements that one would like to see. But as of today, it's not only the aircraft we handed over for testing, but for everyone who tested it, they kept them, we are not taking them back. And as of today, some volume of aerial reconnaissance, correction, and similar tasks are already being performed by Slaviks. Units are communicating with each other. They have streams where they see who is flying for information. They see that someone is flying for an hour and a half, someone is flying at a distance of 20 kilometers. And they start wondering who it is. And then they all blow up my phone. Until it's also at its maximum. How does the transfer process itself happen? It happens in the following way. We contact the unit. The unit provides us with the contacts of the responsible persons—who will test it, which pilots, which direction. We agree on the implementation. Namely, the developers and I come to them. And a light process occurs—not retraining, but a kind of minimal briefing. A pilot who takes the remote, which we've already seen, [finds it] maximally similar. A pilot who connects one antenna with one cable, [finds it] maximally similar. The app is maximally similar. The time for this briefing takes approximately… For a simple explanation of how it all works. Approximately up to an hour, even less. This is if we tell them everything in detail, technically. The time for this briefing including flights. Since it flies for an hour and a half, two flights are an additional three hours. Let's say the briefing takes approximately four hours. I'll tell a story about how this also happened. We gave a unit a Slavik for testing. They went with them to the position and worked. It was good. Unfortunately, their position was hit by the enemy. The pilots themselves left the position. Their colleagues and other pilots came in. They had never seen a Slavik. They had never flown it, never used it. They needed one call, five minutes of time. And they flew out and fully completed the mission. That is, we can take a range from five minutes to an hour, an hour and a half, two. We have our own school—this is Very Aero School, Train to Trainer. We train instructors from other training centers or units. They come to us and then receive training. This is an approximate course on Slavik. Specifically, an instructor course. That is, our instructor trains your instructor; it takes one day. After which the instructor goes back to their training center or their unit. And there, they train pilots directly.

Speaker 3

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Speaker 2

And that's not all you'll find out about Slavik. Because during the preparation of the video, I had to go on a business trip, but we don't give up. So Oleksii Bybenko came to our studio, and I joined online, and we talked more about the price, the bureaucratic status of the drone, and what plans the company has for it.

Speaker 4

We discussed many various nuances about Slavik with the engineers and the product manager. We left the philosophical questions for you. First, the price. How much will Slavik cost?

Speaker 5

What, didn't they say?

Speaker 4

I didn't ask on purpose. I am on

Speaker 5

left for you. The price currently comes to around 200,000 hryvnias. I think we will partially refund money there, but we'll see how it goes with the purchase, because buying components—since it is the first series after all—there might be something unclear here. This is the first part. The second part is the price of the UAV complex. That is, 200,000 looks a bit more expensive than a Mavic, although it depends on which Mavic. But actually, the price still comes out the same, or even a bit cheaper than a Mavic, if we add the ground equipment, the number of airframes, and all that, because we don't need to buy additional antennas, we don't need to buy additional gadgets. For us, it's simple: you buy a UAV complex, and the UAV complex includes 5 airframes, 10 batteries, and, I think, two controllers and two video modules, I believe so. You can combine them however you like, but this is the basic set. And that's it, and you can work, you don't need anything else.

Speaker 4

For BPAK 200,000?

Speaker 5

No, 200,000 is for the drone. That's for the drone with a battery. And for the UAV? Oh, well, that's complicated. Well, basically, it's one thing plus another. Let's put it this way, a 20-meter extension wire for a Mavic costs 30 thousand hryvnias; for us, 50 meters costs, well, say, 5 thousand hryvnias. An antenna module for a Mavic costs, depending on which one you buy, well, from 30 to 100 thousand. I think nobody buys them for 100 thousand now, though some like that still exist. In our case, if you take just the antenna part, it's basically pennies, like, I don't know, 2,000 hryvnias. If you take it with a communication module from a U7y7, then it's, well, say, 700 dollars. The remote, well, basically the remote, I think costs more or less the same as a DJI remote, and objectively, it's more or less the same. And that's it, there you have a finished drone.

Speaker 4

What is its bureaucratic status now—like, codification and so on—what kind of product is it, or perhaps the state has already buried it?

Speaker 5

Yes, look, actually, we just haven't announced it anywhere, as is usually done; it has already passed codification, undergone combat trials in ten different units, it has even already been contracted by the state; well, it's already happening, in short, our main work now consists of plans for next year. Because if everything reaches all the units now, and everything goes as we plan, then it will be, say, one of our main focuses for next year, because objectively, it is a product for which we will have no competition, because simply no one in the world is even attempting to make a Mavic copy, or maybe someone is trying, but it's just not working out very well. That's the first thing. The second thing is that Mavics are becoming harder to buy every day. Well, it's really becoming a bigger problem every day, and well, this is, essentially, our solution. And the third, most important reason is that we have no options to fight using Mavics next year. Such options simply don't exist because the kill zone is growing, and the distances we need to fly are increasing. And here, without increasing the operating range of these reconnaissance copters, well, we will simply lose Mavic crews, because they are a priority target and must be located close to the enemy. And if Mavic crews worked at 10-15 kilometers, then with ours they can work at 15-25 kilometers; these are much greater distances, allowing them to be stationed further away. And the fact that our flight time is longer allows them to loiter even more in the area of interest and operate effectively. And so, in short, as a result, if you take it, the first point is about crew safety, the second point is about the ability to buy these in normal quantities, because for drones in the Mavic class, Matras, you need a ton of them. And the third point is that, well, companies that can make ordinary 10-inch drones are already everywhere, and there is no point in competing if normal products are appearing there. Obviously, we are not completely abandoning ordinary FPVs, but that definitely won't be a priority direction for scaling and development, because there are already enough companies that can produce them properly, at normal prices, with normal quality, support, and so on, and next year, I hope they will only improve, and people will finally stop being offended with us, saying that we are dumping markets or doing something else. Well, in general, the model planned here is that we almost don't plan to sell to units, but plan to sell centrally to the state, and the units will then receive them via distribution from the General Staff, but I hope for normal, clear coordination with us so that drones are received only by crews who have undergone training, or well, it's not even training, it's more like a certification, meaning we check that the crew is okay, they know how to work normally and, like, won't lose the drone on the very first flight. And that's how we will gradually implement it, but it will be in large quantities right away.

Speaker 4

And why is that? Why this way? Why won't you sell directly to the teams? What is the logic?

Speaker 5

Look, yes, here, actually, it's a sad reason because there is no money, and all sales to the decentralized system—both to the chain and direct sales to brigades—occur with post-payment. And for us, to launch mass production of a new product immediately, we actually need money to buy components, and this is not an FPV; this drone is much larger, and accordingly, more money needs to be allocated, so I understood perfectly well that to scale this, prepayments are needed, but unfortunately, for now, prepayments are available to us only in centralized procurement. Active work is currently underway there to launch prepayments per chain, and when prepayments per chain are launched, we will actually open up normal sales to brigades, plus there will be sales to brigades using funds from partner countries, because it is also possible to work with prepayments there. And that is how the scaling will move forward. Well, later we have plans to properly work things out with suppliers so that there are deferred payments, maybe we'll gather some loans or bonds somewhere, and we'll be able, actually, to sell normally with post-payment. But actually, the ideal option is for the state to be able to properly provide the necessary quantities free of charge—at its own expense, but free for the brigades. This will be easier for the brigade and easier for us. And since there won't be a huge number of modifications here, because the drone is super-standardized, in principle, there is no point in going deep into this decentralization, because there won't be any real customization for the brigade, as there is nothing to customize.

Speaker 4

But there is already a contract with the state, they are already buying.

Speaker 5

I don't know whether it's signed or not, but if it's not signed, then it's in the process of being signed. And when the video comes out, let's do it this way? Next Monday, in theory. Yeah, well maybe it will already be signed, I hope it will already be signed. But, yes, everything there is already agreed upon, everything, in short, all the work is in, only formalities remain.

Speaker 4

Another question regarding market competition. Well, I mean, there are companies that also make reconnaissance drones, reconnaissance copters. How does your product differ?

Speaker 5

Yes, well, actually there are other cool products. And they really have their pros and cons there. But what distinguishes this particular drone is that those products are not… The developers didn't even have the goal of copying the Mavic. I mean, such a goal wasn't even set. The goal was to make a drone that would cover the same tasks that the Mavic currently covers. Just, what is the specialty of DJI products, Mavics, Matrasy? The main feature is that a person who has perhaps never had a smartphone or the internet in their life can take this drone and in a week, two days, a day, learn and start working, and they will succeed. And that is the greatest difficulty. Within the limits of how difficult it is to fly 15 kilometers, film something, and transmit this video via digital communication to the dugout. Well, that's not a difficult task. A number of companies have actually successfully solved it, and that's cool. But why is our drone different? In that a child, a person who has never flown anything except a Mavic, and so on, can take it, fly, and it will work normally, without training, without some kind of retraining. That is, just for understanding, it's easier to move from a Mavic to a Slavik than from a Mavic to an Autel. And I think no company set such a goal. Plus, the way the drone itself looks. I mean, I think everyone who has seen in person, let's say, copters, reconnaissance drones from other Ukrainian, European, American, and other manufacturers, when they saw these drones, understood why these drones are not Mavics. For instance, if you take these Parrots, they are cool, they look cool, but they have even less flight time than DJI. If you take the American ones, I don't remember what they're called, they also look not bad, but in terms of flight time, it's even worse. And our drone basically looks, let's say, I don't know, not like a knock-off on… In short, not like just a knock-off, but like a normal mass-produced product. Well, that's how it seems to me. And secondly, it works the same way. I mean, there's none of this… I mean, it's a product that differs greatly from everything in the FPV segment. And the value that, for example, modularity, speed of disassembly-assembly, replacement, reworking, and so on in FPV have, it doesn't exist at all in, let's say, this segment that DJI covers. And many Ukrainian companies, unfortunately, do not understand this.

Speaker 4

By the way, there is an interesting question about the scaling of production itself; simply, if the state is buying it, then, well, theoretically there should be some fairly large batches, depending on how ready you are physically to manufacture them. Because when it came to FPVs under Vyre, you said that you literally timed how long it took to assemble a drone; is it based on the same principle here, well, the same approach to scaling production, or how does it look in general? Because this is, after all, a completely different product compared to FPVs.

Speaker 5

Yes, look, the approaches here are, you could say, similar. What differs is that here, let's say, it's more difficult with the work, well, there, with quality control, with tolerances for parts, because in an FPV drone, well, there, you can have, I don't know, a slightly longer cable length, slightly shorter. But for Slavik, a difference of 5 mm in some cables is already critical; it's already not suitable. Plus the assembly itself and the number of components, and the precision of the fit, it is much higher, and here, well, somehow, there are other component manufacturing technologies, part manufacturing, and so on. That is, yes, there are certain difficulties here, but overall, well, we already have, let's say, quite a lot of experience in serial production, so this definitely won't be a problem. Well, if we're talking about quantities, then for this year, these are still quantities incomparable to the volumes of how much DJI products the country uses, but it's still, those are already large quantities, thousands of drones, and, well, actually, it's such a great start to scale up next year and occupy, well, somehow, a serious part of this niche. But next year it will be a slightly different drone, because there will already be our camera, it will be significantly better. Now the camera, if we compare—we just compared—it's better than the Mavic 3 and worse than the Mavic 4, well, than the 4th mattress. So, in our camera, it will be either on the same level or even better than the 4th mattress, and the thermal imaging part will be, well, just better than probably everything that can be bought in the civilian drone segment, in principle. Any mattresses, any hotels there.

Speaker 4

Your camera, do you make a camera?

Speaker 5

Well, of course, yes. Because in reality, the greatest value of the DJI Mavic and the greatest difficulty is precisely the camera. That is, making a drone is actually also difficult, but it's like, a clear task. Now, making a great camera in a compact body is just, well, like that. This is what distinguishes DJI's Mavic products and specifically the Matrices from Autels, from European analogues, and so on. Well, and of course, even what is installed now is much better than what the Americans have and what the Europeans have. Well, you could say it's comparable to the latest version of the Autel.

Speaker 4

Well, I mean, this leaves room for a new conversation about the components you make yourselves; we can look into that separately. And now, well, this camera—I don't remember, by the way, whether we discussed this or not—is it day-and-night or just day?

Speaker 5

and what is currently in place. What is currently deployed and what is currently being contracted is purely a daytime version. This year, we will also release a thermal imaging version. It has already been tested, everything works; the thermal imager there is the same as on the Mavic and Matras. In principle, it's normal, well, like, no worse, no better, but there is already something much better in development. And there, this year, I hope we will also manage to produce several thousand of those, well, but we'll see about that. Will it be a completely separate thermal drone? Look, yes. At first, it will be a separate thermal drone, but once our camera is there, it will be one drone; it will have both an awesome daytime zoom and an awesome thermal zoom. And as for this separate thermal drone, it will have, let's say, an average daytime zoom, and a purely digital thermal one. In reality, well, if we look at the plans for next year, it will be one drone with one awesome camera for both day and night, for any, let's say, time of day.

Speaker 4

Let's leave the conversation about the cameras for later then. It's actually very interesting and definitely requires a separate conversation. Well, are you satisfied? Slavik, that's it, release.

Speaker 5

Look, overall I'm dissatisfied with the pace, because it might seem to everyone that we've been developing this Slavik for a year and a half, but in reality, half a year passed from development to the first combat missions. It's just that before this, we also worked on a drone that wasn't the Slavik yet, but was also intended to be a replacement for the Mavic. It's just that the first attempt didn't work out; we had to rethink everything and get heavily involved, and then the second attempt definitely succeeded. What I am satisfied with is that even the first units, when they initially called to give feedback, I would ask them, like, "Okay, but to what extent are you ready to switch from Mavics to these drones?" And they say, "Well, we're totally ready." To be honest, I didn't believe it—and I still don't believe—that it's going so smoothly, that they're switching over so quickly; we're waiting for the catch. And so, actually, when you get feedback like that, of course, it's great, it's pleasing. Of course, if we talk about the slightly negative feedback, everyone notes that the camera is worse than that of the fourth Matras. And that's true; it really is. But still, because the flight time is increasing, because there is the possibility to buy them in larger quantities and get them more easily, and the fact that there's no need for retraining—you just take the drone, take a Mavic crew, switch them over, and it flies—well, everyone is basically satisfied, and that's why we're going to launch. So overall I'm satisfied, but it could have been faster. But there's another thing. If we had more capable people—those who watched Militarnyi and wrote in the comments asking why this wasn't done sooner—I want to address all those people: come to us. We actually have a lot of work, including on this project, because there are plans for a small bomber on the same architecture, a "Slavik Mini," so to speak, because Slavik isn't actually an analog of the Mavic, but an analog of the Matras. And there is a lot of work there; we need a lot of people. We are already actually in different regions, different oblasts—it's not just Kyiv—so come, we are waiting for you, there is plenty of work; there's enough for everyone. And if for some reason our recruiters haven't replied to you, we will soon start the practice of rereading comments under the videos. We will find you and fix that.

Speaker 4

Finds by IP what needs to be fixed. Thank you. As I always say, don't hold back, join Miltech, give a like, share the video, so that as many people as possible find out about Slavik and that you can find a cool place in Vyriy.

Speaker 5

By the way, you know what we haven't discussed yet? This is planned—let's say—an export version of Slavik. And we were recently just assessing, let's say, the European, American, and overall global drone markets. And there, realistically, any army in the world that currently wants to build this modern defense perimeter simply has no options other than, essentially, DJI. And it's clear that NATO countries are unlikely to be procuring active DJI products. Therefore, this is the product that we plan to push so actively abroad as well. But if we are being watched, such as by defense ministers of foreign countries, then, first and foremost, remember that for us to sell you Slavik, you need to be great friends of Ukraine, and ideally, buy just as many for Ukraine.

Speaker 4

So you actually view Slavik as an export, one of the export products?

Speaker 5

Yes, 100%. Because it is simply a very easy niche in the world where there is no one to compete with, because the Ministry of Defense of any European country will not buy DJI, and overall they will buy [others] and there is nothing else. It's just completely, is it the Blue Ocean or whatever it's called?

Speaker 4

To be honest, I'm at MSPO, and there at various exhibitions, the Lithuanians constantly have drones of this type. Well, then again, this needs to be looked at in more detail; if it looks like a reconnaissance copter on the outside, it doesn't necessarily mean it's a reconnaissance copter. I saw such a drone with the Danes as well, I saw such a drone with the Estonians, so there is something there, but there, in my opinion, it's the air time. Everything is just not right.

Speaker 5

Well, yes, I remember our first exhibition, before which we came up with the name "Vyriy", and there we flew around the IEC, it was still '23 or '22, flew around the IEC, well, everyone seemed to like it, everyone was like, well, yes, drones are flying, it's all logical. And then, when the journalists arrived, we didn't come that day, it was the last day of the exhibition, and the organizers started approaching other drone manufacturers, like, "fly, because we've invited journalists here, we said that drones are flying around the IEC here, but, like, no one is flying." And no one was able to fly. So we had to come just to fly. Therefore, I, how should I say, am quite skeptical of drones that are displayed at exhibitions.

Speaker 4

Well, yes, yes, that's true, there is a certain logic to it, yes. Okay, thank you. Well, now that's definitely everything. Once again, I remind you, don't hold back, subscribe to "Militarny", share the video, and definitely, if you are looking for a job in Miltech, they will—they will write back to you there, honestly. They will find you via the episode, they really do. Thank you very much.

Speaker 5

Yes, thank you.