Wounded Ukrainian soldier rescued after 57 days on front line in third aerial drone evacuation
The rescue was carried out by soldiers from the 475th CODE 9.2 Assault Regiment, in cooperation with the drone manufacturer SkyFall, Militarnyi reports.
The wounded soldier, who uses the call sign Donbas, served in a neighboring unit. He was injured on September 2, but troops were unable to reach him by land for an extended period.
His position was surrounded by minefields, and the rough terrain made movement difficult. Russian FPV drones also attacked the area constantly, making a conventional evacuation too dangerous.
The troops eventually turned to the StarGate unmanned aircraft system. The drone flew more than 15 kilometers each way, reached the soldier's position, and brought him out.
The soldier was stranded just two kilometers from the Russian border. After the aerial evacuation, he was taken to a hospital.
This was the third time the 475th CODE 9.2 Assault Regiment had used StarGate to evacuate a wounded soldier by air. The operation was also shared on X:
Джерело: SkyFall https://t.co/2QQwo08INE
— Владислав (@Vladislav110528) November 2, 2026
On October 19, Rubryka reported that soldiers from the unmanned ground systems company of the 92nd Separate Assault Brigade, together with other units, had evacuated a wounded infantryman from the front line using a heavy-lift hexacopter made by Ukrainian company Gurzuf Defence. It was the first such evacuation.
The soldier, Kostiantyn Vlasenko, had lost one foot to gangrene and had to amputate his other foot himself after being wounded. Despite his injuries, he continued secretly monitoring Russian forces and passing vital information to fellow soldiers. He spent 491 days carrying out missions at his position, including 232 days alone while seriously wounded and hiding from Russian troops.
On October 26, a StarGate drone helped soldiers from the 475th Assault Regiment CODE 9.2 rescue two troops who could not be reached by ground vehicles. During one mission, the drone flew nearly 60 kilometers round trip despite Russian attempts to jam its satellite signal.
SkyFall developed StarGate specifically to transport wounded soldiers and previously supplied the drone to the military for frontline testing.
The drone has a dedicated medical compartment fitted with a stretcher. It can carry a payload of up to 150 kilograms and reach speeds of 105 kilometers per hour. Its stated flight range is up to 30 kilometers.
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