If you thought you’d seen it all in the Ukraine war, think again. A video from a Russian volunteer group called Project Archangel has surfaced online, showing a quadcopter drone literally zip-tied to the wing of a Russian MiG-29 fighter jet.
The idea, according to the group, is to experiment with intercepting enemy unmanned aircraft. But here’s the problem: the drone can’t be launched mid-flight, and it’s doubtful it could even survive the blistering speeds of a fighter jet. Analysts point out it might even interfere with the MiG’s own defence systems—making the whole setup look more like a PR stunt than a viable combat solution.
Project Archangel, which claims to develop combat drones, went as far as suggesting the MiG-29 could carry the interceptor to targets over cities like Kyiv or Lviv. Military experts have dismissed this as pure fantasy: Russian jets don’t go anywhere near those areas because Ukraine’s air defences remain strong and lethal.
The group also claimed to have solved communications issues by “training drone operators to fly fighter jets.” Given the skill, training time, and astronomical costs involved, that’s another claim specialists find implausible.
Still, the stunt underlines a real and growing concern for Russia—the rising threat of drones in modern warfare. While fighter-jet-launched drones are a long way off, Moscow is investing in other counter-drone measures, from loitering munitions to more advanced aerial systems.
For now, though, Project Archangel’s MiG-29 hack looks more like a bit of wartime theatre than the next big thing in aerial combat.
