MAGURA (Maritime Autonomous Guard Unmanned Robotic Apparatus V-type) is a class of Ukrainian multi-purpose

unmanned surface vehicle An unmanned surface vehicle, unmanned surface vessel or uncrewed surface vessel (USV), colloquially called a drone boat, drone ship or sea drone, is a boat or ship that operates on the surface of the water without a crew. USVs operate with v ...

s (USV) developed for use by the Main Directorate of Intelligence of Ukraine (HUR) and capable of performing various tasks:

surveillance Surveillance is the monitoring of behavior, many activities, or information for the purpose of information gathering, influencing, managing, or directing. This can include observation from a distance by means of electronic equipment, such as ...

reconnaissance In military operations, military reconnaissance () or scouting is the exploration of an area by military forces to obtain information about enemy forces, the terrain, and civil activities in the area of operations. In military jargon, reconnai ...

patrolling Patrolling is a military tactic. Small groups or individual units are deployed from a larger formation to achieve a specific objective and then return. The tactic of patrolling may be applied to ground troops, armored units, naval units, and c ...

search and rescue Search and rescue (SAR) is the search for and provision of aid to people who are in distress or imminent danger. The general field of search and rescue includes many specialty sub-fields, typically determined by the type of terrain the search ...

, mine countermeasures,

maritime security Maritime security is an umbrella term informed to classify issues in the Maritime transport, maritime domain that are often related to national security, marine environment, economic development, and human security. This includes the world's ocea ...

, and combat missions. The Magura V5 was introduced in 2023; the Magura V6P and Magura V7 were added in 2025, the latter being armed with various missiles designed to shoot down enemy aircraft.

Development

HUR signed contracts to design a new USV with private companies who had previously worked with the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) in designing USVs, however had their partnerships terminated due to disputes with the SBU over project specifications and budget. A new partnership with HUR was formed that started the project which eventually developed the MAGURA V5. In November 2022, the Ukrainian government announced the development of a Ukrainian combat surface drone with a range of up to 800 km. The boat was first presented at the International Defence Industry Fair, which took place from 25 to 28 July 2023, in

Istanbul Istanbul is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, constituting the country's economic, cultural, and historical heart. With Demographics of Istanbul, a population over , it is home to 18% of the Demographics ...

, Turkey. On 29 July 2023, a

CNN Cable News Network (CNN) is a multinational news organization operating, most notably, a website and a TV channel headquartered in Atlanta. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable ne ...

report confirmed that the MAGURA V5

kamikaze , officially , were a part of the Japanese Special Attack Units of military aviators who flew suicide attacks for the Empire of Japan against Allied naval vessels in the closing stages of the Pacific campaign of World War II, intending to d ...

boat existed not only as an exhibition model but also as an operational system. Unlike the Sea Baby used by the SBU, which carries a heavier explosive payload and is primarily used to strike stationary targets such as ships docked in port, the smaller and more manoeuvrable MAGURA V5 is designed for striking warships at sea. Both the MAGURA and Sea Baby were provided to the 385th USV Brigade after its formation as the world's first USV unit in August 2023, although their operatives were still HUR and SBU. A variant armed with

AIM-9 Sidewinder The AIM-9 Sidewinder is a short-range air-to-air missile. Entering service with the United States Navy in 1956 and the Air Force in 1964, the AIM-9 is one of the oldest, cheapest, and most successful air-to-air missiles. Its latest variants rema ...

missiles modified for surface-to-air operation was developed from January 2025. According to the head of HUR, Lt. Gen. Kyrylo Budanov: "We use a couple of models f missileson our Magura-7, but the best results ome fromthe AIM-9." This variant was claimed to have shot down Russian aircraft with Sidewinder missiles in May 2025. The Russian Defense Ministry did not comment, but Russian sources report that the pilots of one fighter were rescued by a cargo ship, whose crew received an award.

Operational use

In November 2023, in one documented operational use of the drones, one

Serna-class landing craft The Serna class, Russian designation Project 11770, is a class of air cavity system landing craft constructed for the Russian Navy. Twelve boats were built by Vostochnaya Verf between 1994 and 2014. Four boats of the export project 11771 were bui ...

and one Akula-class landing craft docked at a Russian Navy base in Chornomorske, in western Crimea were destroyed. On 1 February 2024, several MAGURA V5 drones struck and sank the ''Tarantul-III'' class missile corvette ''Ivanovets'' in the Black Sea near Lake Donuzlav in Crimea. On 14 February 2024, several MAGURA V5 drones were used to attack and sink the large landing ship ''Tsezar Kunikov'' near

Alupka Alupka (Ukrainian language, Ukrainian and Russian language, Russian: ; ; , Alòpex) is a resort city located in the Crimea, Crimean peninsula, a territory of Ukraine currently annexed by Russian Federation (see 2014 Crimean crisis). It is located ...

in Russian-occupied Crimea. The sinking was confirmed by Russian sources. On 5 March 2024, MAGURA V5 drones were used in an attack that sank the patrol ship '' Sergey Kotov'' near the

Kerch Strait The Kerch Strait is a strait in Eastern Europe. It connects the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov, separating the Kerch Peninsula of Crimea in the west from the Taman Peninsula of Russia's Krasnodar Krai in the east. The strait is to wide and up ...

. On 30 May 2024, the HUR claimed the destruction of two Russian boats of the KC-701 Tuna type with the help of Magura V5 strike marine drones. On 10 August 2024, it destroyed a Russian KS 701 Tunets high-speed boat near the settlement of Chornomorske. On 31 December 2024, the HUR reported that a MAGURA V5 adapted to fire R-73 air-to-air missiles shot down a Russian

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helicopter near Cape Tarkhankut, in western Crimea and damage another, which dropped flares during the attack and eventually managed to return to base. On 2 May 2025, west of

Novorossiysk Novorossiysk (, ; ) is a city in Krasnodar Krai, Russia. It is one of the largest ports on the Black Sea. It is one of the few cities designated by the Soviet Union as a Hero City. The population was History In antiquity, the shores of the ...

, HUR Magura V7 naval drones reportedly shot down two Russian Su-30SM fighter jets using

missiles in what was claimed to be the first shoot-down of a jet by a maritime drone. Su-30 "Flanker" jets are estimated to cost $50 million each. Ukrainian Defense Intelligence chief Kyrylo Budanov claimed that at least three Magura V7 USVs were used, and that while the crew of the first jet successfully ejected and were recovered by a civilian ship in the Black Sea, the second crew was killed.

Tactical and technical characteristics

It is reported by the Ministry of Digital Transformation that the drone is equipped with an autopilot system, video subsystems,

night vision Night vision is the ability to see in low-light conditions, either naturally with scotopic vision or through a night-vision device. Night vision requires both sufficient spectral range and sufficient intensity range. Humans have poor night v ...

equipment, redundant communication modules, and a combat module. It also includes a ground-based autonomous control station, transportation and storage system, and a data centre.

Variants

*MAGURA V5 − Original version. *MAGURA V6P − Multirole

. *MAGURA V7 − An enlarged version powered by a diesel engine and armed with either a turret-mounted machine gun or anti-aircraft missiles, with the preferred configuration being two

Development

Operational use

Tactical and technical characteristics

Variants

See also

Notes

References

Further reading