A disused warehouse is the setting of the Killhouse Academy's training course, where pilots learn to control FPV drones. CBS News

In a disused warehouse at an undisclosed location in Ukraine, a military drone instructor who goes by the call sign "DC" showed CBS News a makeshift practice course that students must learn to fly the increasingly indispensable devices through before they join the country's defense against Russia.

The trainees have to master the operation of the small but mighty First-Person-View (FPV) drones, which have become a signature weapon in the ongoing war sparked by Russia's February 2022 full-scale invasion.

"In the battlefield, all you have to do is travel the biggest distance possible and fly, with such bad signal that your eyes will bleed," DC said calmly as he flew a practice drone around the course at the Killhouse Academy.

Both civilians and military personnel learn at the academy to pilot FPV drones, and to use them as lethal weapons, through both computer simulations and practical flight and target practice using real drones.

Practice and patience are essential, said DC, who is one of the men in charge of training Ukraine's next generation of defenders.

"You have to be calm, you cannot see a target and, for example, rush to it like a bull. You have to be able to be thinking and watching and detecting your target," DC said, "it's the hardest part of the job."

Despite their small size, the drones represent a major development in modern warfare. Once equipped with an explosive charge, they can be quickly flown to distant targets by remote operators piloting via a live feed from a camera mounted on the weapons.

"To save lives, to save money and time, you have to become unmanned. Because if you use manpower, it will only get you so far," said DC.

The widespread use of cheaper, expendable drones in the nearly four-year-long war in Ukraine has been watched closely by the U.S. military. On June 6, President Trump signed the "Unleashing American Drone Dominance" executive order, seeking to shore up domestic production of cheap, lethal drones.

The Pentagon has recently announced its intention to purchase 200,000 drones with lethal capabilities by 2027, as part of what it calls the Drone Dominance Program.

For both Ukrainian and Russian troops on the battlefield, drones are already very much a reality, accounting for about 80% of military casualties in Ukraine, according to some estimates. They have revolutionized warfare, and given Ukraine a way to try to level the playing field against Russia, which has vastly more soldiers to throw at the front lines.

"If you want to survive, you will find the best solution," DC told CBS News.

He said he was unsure how many Russian soldiers he'd killed on the battlefield, but his focus now is on training others to compete with Russia's drone operators. He compared it to an arms race.

"Only those survive who adapt. Adaptability is key," he said. "It's a constant race for us and for them, to find an upper hand over the enemy."


The lightweight and cheap FPV drones can be outfitted with explosive charges and have become a signature weapon in the war between Russia and Ukraine. CBS News

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