Less than a year after the German company Helsing announced the start of production of 6,000 HX-2 drones, Ukraine and Germany would have decided to suspend their acquisition following the receipt of new data from combat testing, in which the unmanned systems reportedly showed weaknesses in withstanding the interference generated by Russian defenses. The development was reported by Bloomberg, which indicated that German military sources made a presentation listing the drone’s problems observed during the tests, led by General Gunter Schneider.
Delving into some details, the German report indicates that the HX-2 experienced various difficulties in maintaining its connection with its human operator at the base upon entering areas covered by Russian jamming equipment, thus hindering its precise use against targets. Moreover, it was detected that the model appeared to lack the artificial intelligence systems announced by the manufacturer that were supposed to pilot it in cases where the operator temporarily lost the connection, further diminishing its ability to operate at the front. Both factors were noted during tests carried out by Ukraine’s 14th Regiment, a unit specialized in drone operations that shared its experiences with its German counterparts, who subsequently prepared the report.
As expected, the presentation prompted a swift response from the manufacturer Helsing, whose spokespeople flatly rejected that the drones had exhibited the failures described in the presentation. Citing some of the statements issued in this regard: “The impact rate of the first flights, officially documented, is encouraging. We are confident that the performance shown in HX-2 tests will translate into a high impact rate on the battlefield as well, even under conditions of electronic warfare.”
They further added that different units of the Ukrainian Army had already shown interest in acquiring them, even as data also became public reflecting a worrying level of failures at the takeoff stage, namely: only 25% of the drones evaluated in combat managed to do so correctly. In this case, Ukrainian operators focused on mechanical problems in the catapult system used to launch them, but Helsing also denied that this had occurred, arguing that a large portion of the drones delivered so far have already been used at the front.
From the German Ministry of Defense, through a spokesperson who responded to inquiries from the aforementioned outlet, it was denied that the report had been reviewed and approved prior to its recent presentation. In addition, the ministry denied the possibility of General Schneider being interviewed, raising doubts as to whether this is truly a consensual version. Regardless of this, sources familiar with the system in Germany also reportedly pointed out that a decision was made not to proceed with the purchase until the HX-2 meets the interests of Ukrainian troops, while from Kyiv it was stated that the matter is classified.
Finally, it should be noted that these would not be the first unmanned systems that initially presented problems leading to low rates of combat effectiveness, both for the German manufacturer and for international competitors. In this regard, it is useful to recall that Helsing’s HF-1–type drones had also been the subject of criticism for their high cost relative to their performance, even though Kyiv had opted to add up to 4,000 units. Another illustrative example is found in the Ghost and Altius drones developed by Anduril, which in the initial stages of the war showed an impact rate of only 10%, with a manufacturer that has already stated it is working on modifications to improve their resilience.
*Images used for illustrative purposes.
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