Ukraine’s 412th Brigade Uses Morrigan Drone to Strike Russian Logistics on R-280 Highway, Prompting Alternative Routes and Partial Closure

The 412th Nemesis Brigade released close-up and pre-launch footage on Saturday of a fixed-wing drone it calls the Morrigan, which it has used to attack the R-280 highway roughly 50 to 75 miles behind the front lines. The drone measures roughly 4 to 5 feet long, features swept wings and two tail fins, and carries a single-propeller engine mounted on the nose.

It is launched from a rail or slingshot platform and is locally produced in Ukraine, the brigade said.

It added that the drone has already operated in Crimea on several occasions and destroyed top Russian air defense and support targets there. The brigade said the Morrigan is now conducting a logistical hunt from Mariupol to Crimea along the R-280, also known as the Novorossiya highway.

The 370-mile route runs from Rostov-on-Don to Crimea, passes through Mariupol and Melitopol, and lies about 50 to 75 miles from the front lines.

Russian state media outlet TASS reported at least five Ukrainian attacks on the highway during that period, with at least three involving supply or fuel trucks. Russian-backed officials in the occupied territories said on Monday that they were working on alternative routes for the R-280, citing intensified Ukrainian attacks since mid-May.

On May 21, Vladimir Saldo, the Russian-backed governor of the Kherson region, ordered a temporary closure of part of the highway to non-essential civilian traffic.

The R-280 is used by both civilian motorists and commercial transport. The 412th Nemesis Brigade is part of Ukraine's Unmanned Systems Forces.