The Czech company LPP Holding conducted field tests in Ukraine of the MTS family of attack drones equipped with an artificial intelligence-based guidance and navigation system.
According to the Czech publication E15, the drones in attack configuration have already been used for several months in combat conditions as part of the Defense Forces of Ukraine.
According to the developers, the key advantage of the drones is the ability to operate autonomously — without operator involvement and even under conditions of intensive electronic warfare. This became possible thanks to artificial intelligence, which is capable of recognizing objects and navigating using map data without the use of GPS.
According to Jakub Landovský, Executive Director of the Aspen Institute Central Europe, the drones have proven their indispensability in Ukraine.
"Their weakness is communication with the operator, which can be eliminated either by securing a connection that is difficult to jam — for example, through optical fiber — or by complete autonomy of the drones," Landovský confirms the suitability of AI usage.
The development of the system took less than a year. The company's current production capacity is about 50 units per month, with prospects for further growth.
LPP offers three drone models: the MTS05 — a compact tactical drone designed for operations at distances of up to several dozen kilometers; the MTS25 — a larger device with an internal combustion engine, capable of covering distances of hundreds of kilometers.
In addition, the model range includes the MTS40 — the most powerful member of the family, which can carry a warhead weighing up to 12 kg.
LPP will present the AI-controlled drone at the IDET trade fair in Brno in May. Also to be seen will be a ground drone based on artificial intelligence called Hornet, which uses a lidar sensor to recognize the surrounding terrain.
