A Russian lawmaker proposes creating a "Eagle Squadron" to stop Kremlin-style attacks in the nation by intercepting Ukrainian UAVs.

Alexei Zhuravlev, the deputy chairman of the State Duma Defense Committee, made an exceptional request to build a "squadron of eagle interceptors" to help defend Moscow from future drone assaults as Russian officials continue to deal with the unanticipated drone attack on the Kremlin.

Alexei Zhuravlev stated on May 4 to the Russian news agency RIA Novosti that "we need to think about protecting our vital infrastructure to the point of deploying a squadron of drone interceptor eagles in the Kremlin and other places."

Zhuravlev also called for a Russian attack on the offices of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and the headquarters of the Ukrainian security services in response to the alleged Kremlin drone attack. Vladimir Putin was allegedly the target of a conspiracy by Ukraine, according to Russia.

The idea to set up eagle interceptors is being made in response to an alarming number of drone assaults on Russian targets. Russia's oil facilities were purportedly hit by drones after the Kremlin strike, which has also been linked to Kyiv.

Vladislav Shurygin, a military expert and pro-war commentator, posted a video on his Telegram channel shortly after Zhuravlev's remark demonstrating an eagle successfully catching a drone in mid-flight. Since then, the video has gained popularity on social media and raised questions regarding the use of eagles as interceptors.

According to ornithologist Lydia Katashuk, eagles can be employed to defend some objects from drones, but only during the day.

Theoretically, yes, it is feasible. Eagles have always posed a threat to drones and still do. Even eagles in the wild are motivated to defend their own space. For small drones, falcons would be adequate, and for larger drones, great eagles would be appropriate. Yet, eagles are only active during the day, according to Lydia Katashuk.

He continued, "Drones can also be launched at night. Eagle owls also do not belong in this group because of the entirely different ways they fly and attack their prey.

Indeed, that is, during the day. I had this thought long before the fight even started. Everyone who is knowledgeable about birds can see this.

The majority of drones used in battle have night vision capabilities, allowing them to attack their targets with precision and clarity. Any kind of bird cannot be subject to the same rules.

She claimed that it was simple to teach a bird to attack a drone. "The use of unmanned aerial vehicles to train birds is nothing new. There are numerous films from Western Europe and the United States that demonstrate how UAVs are used to prepare birds for hunting. In other words, it's simple to train birds to attack drones. According to Lydia Katashuk, preparation would take roughly a month.

Several military observers and pro-Ukraine netizens derided the notion put out by the Russian politician, calling it "bizarre." Nonetheless, Russia won't be the first nation to train and employ birds, such as eagles, to destroy hostile and suspicious unmanned aerial vehicles.

According to earlier media reports, the Indian Army had trained eagles to hunt down enemy spy drones that were in the air. Eagles and other prey birds have been chosen as interceptors for the Indian army's challenge posed by the reported supply of weapons and drugs from across the Pakistani border.

The Indian Army taught the vultures how to take out enemy drones that were flying overhead. One of the birds was initially seen during the 18th iteration of Yudh Abhyas, an annual joint military exercise between India and the US in Uttarakhand. A camera was attached to the kite's head.

Military exercise footage showed the bird flying off from a soldier's palm before grabbing an on-air target and dropping it off at a distance.

Together with India, Europe's The Netherlands has trained and used eagles. The Dutch Police were the first agency in the world to deploy this novel technique for drone eradication, according to a recent BBC story.

The birds were trained by Dutch police. The birds were able to assault the drones without getting hurt thanks to their strong claws and talons. Yet, less than a year later the police stopped similar operations.

The Swiss Eagles, Altair and Draco, were assigned with carrying out anti-drone operations in the nation to protect dignitaries. Switzerland similarly embraced this novel strategy. Unfortunately, for a number of reasons related to safety, the avian protection squadron was disbanded.

Unknown given the rise in drone assaults is whether the Russians would assemble an eagle interceptor squadron. Yet if it decides to move forward, it won't be the first and most certainly not the first nation to do so.