Ukraine airlifts wounded soldier with drone in reported world-first

Topic:Unrest, Conflict and WarPosted Tue 20 Oct 2026 at 11:32amTue 20 Oct 2026 at 11:32amIn short:Ukraine's 92nd Assault Brigade has shared footage of what it says is a wounded soldier being airlifted to safety by a drone.The location of the evacuation has not been revealed.The brigade's drone unit describe the operation as a world-first.A Ukrainian army brigade says a wounded soldier has been rescued from the front line using an aerial drone, describing the evacuation as the first of its kind.The brigade published a video showing the drone lowering itself to the ground, before a man in combat gear fastened himself to a winch onboard and was lifted upwards.The brigade did not say where the evacuation took place."The operation was successful — the wounded person was saved! He is now undergoing treatment and rehabilitation, and his life is no longer in danger," the drone unit of Ukraine's 92nd Separate Assault Brigade said on Facebook.The drone operator can be heard on the video greeting the man with "Welcome back to earth".The drone's manufacturer, Gurzuf Defence, said the man had spent almost a year and a half in a dangerous combat position and was unable to be rescued by conventional means."Any attempt to reach him would have meant a deadly risk for the rescue team," it said.The drone, an Ayudag-6 hexacopter, "brought the wounded man to a safer position, where he was met by comrades who arranged for his onward evacuation to a hospital".The StarGate drone, made by the SkyFall drone company and equipped with a medical module, flies during a demonstration at an undisclosed location in Ukraine. (AP: Evgeniy Maloletka)Ukraine has long used unmanned ground vehicles to evacuate wounded soldiers from the battlefield, but this was the first reported instance of an aerial drone being used for the same purpose.The 92nd Assault Brigade's drone unit described the operation as a world-first.The rescue occurred just days after Ukraine began frontline testing of a medical evacuation drone known as The StarGate, which can carry up to 150 kilograms on a medical stretcher.AFP/AP