• TankieTanuki [he/him]@hexbear.net
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      1 day ago

      cable that can extend 10-20kms

      I wonder how strong it is, and what kind of waste is left on the terrain. Do they retract the cords after the explosion, to avoid giving away their position?

      • carpoftruth [any, any]@hexbear.netM
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        24 hours ago

        No, the fiber wire stays out afterwards. It leaves a huge mess. There are photos of busy fields and hedge rows on telegram with a spider web of wire everywhere

        • MarmiteLover123 [comrade/them, comrade/them]@hexbear.net
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          21 hours ago

          If the spool has the ability to spit out wire fast enough (faster than the drones top speed) with minimal latency (the spool can accelerate faster than the drone) it shouldn’t be an issue with getting caught on static objects. The main concern would be getting the wire caught on moving objects, like cyclists/motorbikes, cars, tanks, etc. Then you could end up with scenarios where the wire can’t be spooled out fast enough due to the movement of the object the wire is caught on. Apparently when Ukraine tested out this concept, they had big issues with that.

          • Z_Poster365 [none/use name]@hexbear.net
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            18 hours ago

            From what I understand of Russian telegrams that discuss this, fiber optic drones are most effectively used when you control the high ground (as with artillery). If you launch from the highest position in the surrounding 20km radius then you can hit wherever you want without the fiber optic cables touching anything outside of power lines and trees. If you use it in an urban area it’s very different tactics.