UAV Initiative · Internal Account Playbook
Dimas, Serhii & Illia: Specs, Needs & Strategy
A single working brief: exactly what each customer needs, the play to run with each, and how Illia fits as the build partner. Internal - not for sharing with manufacturers.
Updated 2026-05-29
Dimas paid brigade beachhead
Serhii 419th Bn, donation-first
Illia build partner
What this is
Your one-page-per-person playbook for the two warm, funded relationships and the manufacturer behind them, pulled from every call and the May-29 WhatsApp drop. Use it to walk into Dnipro and the Saturday Krakow anti-drone meeting knowing exactly what each side needs and what you are running.
The shape of the account map: Dimas is the revenue path (a brigade that buys with its own money), Serhii (419th) is the credibility + field-test + intelligence path (donation-first), and Illia is the hands that build it. The anti-drone partner (separate brief, identity to confirm) is a potential second/anti-drone manufacturer.
01 Dimas BUYS WITH BRIGADE MONEY
Dimas
UAV commander, 155th Brigade (offered to meet at Pavlohrad / Dnipro / command post) · WhatsApp contact "Dimas Boxing Trainer" · WhatsApp day-to-day
Full specs (what he flies / wants)
- Fiber range: 10-30 km (by target distance).
- Payload: 1.5-4.5 kg.
- Frame: mostly 10-13" fiber FPV.
- Fleet tiers: fiber FPV (primary, anti-jam) · radio + digital FPV · Starlink/satellite. Frequency-hopping "doesn't help."
- Models he rates: Beshket ("top of the top"), Uryi (balanced, good load, weak in strong wind), Goryn (digital cam, release/landing unreliable), Ronni (better optics, worse cam). All fiber-optic, payload under 4.5 kg.
- Price anchor: ~$1,800 (75,000 UAH) per fiber FPV.
Needs / pain (what to solve)
- Reliable fiber cable - the #1 ask: cable that does not snap at range (maker/batch quality is random; failure = lose signal + control, drone gone).
- Good batteries - the second quality failure point.
- Anti-drone / counter-UAS - "very relevant now, they do a lot of work on the front"; rates DROZD and General Chereshnya best. (Feeds the Saturday anti-drone meeting.)
- No AI targeting of humans - hard line: non-AI drones have already hit own soldiers, an AI drone could hit one own soldier AND another nearby; AI needs specialists/software/time (a front-line barrier); manual FPV keeps the operator in control. AI ok for vehicles/large targets only.
- Fiber is used only for video + control; the drone still flies on its own onboard battery.
- Any AI/IoT add-on must fit in the low hundreds of dollars (his fiber FPV is ~75,000 UAH / ~$1,800-2,000 total).
| Drone in use | Class | Spec (researched) | His verdict |
|---|
| Beshket (tentative) | fiber FPV | under 4.5 kg payload; 10", ~15/20/25 km, ~$1,960-2,820 (researched) | "top of the top" |
| Uryi (tentative) | fiber FPV | under 4.5 kg payload; not confirmed in catalog - verify vs Brave1 | balanced, good load; unstable in strong wind |
| Goryn (tentative) | fiber FPV | under 4.5 kg payload; not in catalog - verify vs Brave1 | top digital cam; landing/release unreliable |
| Ronni (tentative) | fiber FPV | under 4.5 kg payload; not in catalog - verify vs Brave1 | stronger optics, worse camera |
| DROZD · General Chereshnya | anti-drone | counter-UAS (see anti-drone brief). General Chereshnya = "General Cherry" maker is a tentative inference | "the best" on the front now |
Strategy with Dimas - the paid beachhead
He is the revenue engine: a brigade with discretionary money (~$500-800k/month official + e-points/charity), a commander who already approved working with you, and a standing offer to host you in Dnipro.
- Land small, verified: deliver a correctly-spec'd 10-13" fiber FPV (good cable + battery + QC) plus a one-page traceability/QC report - the differentiator no one else gives him.
- Use the free shot: hand him Illia's radio test units at Dnipro now - zero-cost field validation that builds trust before any build.
- Convert: a 10-20 unit batch that measurably beats what he flies -> brigade order (cash-flow-safe small batches, his money, fast channel).
- Expand the surface: bring anti-drone into the conversation (his hot button) - which is exactly why the anti-drone partner matters.
Open questions / what to ask Dimas
- Which fiber-optic cable brand/spec and battery brand/spec do you currently use, so we can benchmark the upgrade?
- Do your drones have night-vision / thermal cameras, and do they operate at night? (asked 2026-05-25 7:06-7:07 PM, still unanswered)
- Are VTOL drones useful to you? (only anti-drones explicitly confirmed useful so far)
- Manufacturer websites / detailed specs for Goryn, Uryi, Ronni, Beshket (requested, not yet provided).
- Exact USD/UAH price of the Starlink satellite drones (you said they cost more than fiber).
- The DROZD maker/website, and is General Chereshnya the same as the "General Cherry" maker?
- Did the Krakow meeting land on solo or joint travel with the anti-drone partner?
02 Serhii DONATION-FIRST · INTEL
Serhii Smirnov
419th Separate UAV Battalion (tactical level, ~30 km) · smirnovsergii@gmail.com · intro via Sayed
Full specs (what the 419th flies)
- Fiber range: 15-20 km (zone) / 25-30 km (deep recon).
- Frame: 10/13" fiber; 7-13" radio.
- Models: fiber - Vyriy, Gromylo, Beshket; radio - Heneral Chereshnya, F10, Rarog, Vyriy, Shrike, Kalibri.
- Night: heavy bombers ("Baba Yaga"), rarely FPV.
- Tempo: 10-15 drones/day/position; ~3 crew/position; manual aiming; ~20% hit rate.
- Relays: DJI Matrice retranslators (400-500 m).
Needs / steer (what he says matters)
- Signal resilience #1 - jamming + terrain loss is the biggest killer; auto-aim he tested was too slow/imprecise.
- Fiber is fading - too costly; reserved for high-value targets only.
- Rising niches: retranslator drones; wing recon+relay (loiter 1-2 km up, find + relay); long-loiter multi-camera FPV (big battery, 2-3 cams, landing legs); middle/deep-strike (Starlink/mesh).
- Funding: gov drones + self-purchase budget (approved allow-list only) + charity/volunteer + "Yabali" e-points (verified kills -> points; ~12 points/kill; 1 point ≈ 5,000 "greenhouse" points-currency, exact UAH/USD equivalence unconfirmed; redeemed on the Brave1 "brilliant" market). Donations skip certification; production needs a Brave1 listing (cert reportedly ~24 hrs now).
- Auto-aim root cause (his guess): not the processor but camera quality + software quality (Sayed proposed faster software).
- Ask: a 10-12 unit batch for real statistics.
| Drone in use | Class | Maker | Spec (researched) |
|---|
| Vyriy OPTO | fiber FPV | Vyriy Drone | 10/15", 4-8 kg, 15-30 km, ~$600+ |
| Gromylo Optik | fiber FPV | Wardrone Pro | 10", up to 3.5 kg, up to 20 km |
| Beshket 10 | fiber FPV | Brave1-listed | 10", 15/20/25 km, ~$1,960-2,820 |
| General Cherry (Chereshnya) | radio FPV | General Cherry | 7-15", 1.5-8 kg, 16-32 km, ~$550 |
| F10 | radio FPV | F-Drones (UDD) | 10", ~$611 |
| Rarog-10 | radio FPV | domestic | 10", up to 4.5 kg, ~13 km |
| Vyriy 10 / MAX | radio FPV | Vyriy Drone | 10-15", 4-8 kg, 30-40 km, ~$470-845 |
| Shrike | radio + fiber | SkyFall | ~10", ~1 kg, up to 20 km, $300-1,500 |
| Kolibri (Kalibri) 7/10/13 | radio + fiber | TAF Industries | 7-13", 1.5-4 kg, 23-30 km, ~$417+ |
| "Baba Yaga" (Vampire / R18) | night bomber | SkyFall / Aerorozvidka | 5-15 kg payload; night/thermal |
Strategy with Serhii - credibility, lab & compass
Lower direct revenue than Dimas, but he is your proof, your test range, and your market compass. He told you where the front is moving - listen.
- Donate the first 10-12: no certification needed, fast feedback, and a reference unit (the 419th) you can name to other commanders.
- Mine the intel: his steer reshapes the product - lean toward relay + recon-wing + long-loiter multi-camera drones, which fit your AI/IoT + optics strengths far better than commodity fiber FPV.
- Use his network: he routes results to commanders and charity/volunteer funds - a second demand channel.
- Keep fiber honest: his "fiber is fading" is the counter-signal to the import idea - validate demand before any container.
Open questions / what to ask Serhii
- Confirm the fiber-optic payload requirement in kilograms (asked in chat, no number yet).
- What payload (kg) between 4 and 10 should the heavier "standby" Starlink drone target?
- Should we pursue tactical retranslator-class drones (your battalion's actual need) or middle-strike (which you do not operate)?
- What is the processor-vs-software root cause of the slow/imprecise auto-aim? (camera + software is your guess, unverified)
- Are VTOL and anti-drone (counter-UAS) drones useful? (you asked for a VTOL definition/example first, still open)
- Which specific decision-makers / commanders and charity-volunteer funds will you introduce, and when?
- Per-model specs/brands/websites for your fleet (you pointed to Brave1 but gave no per-model specs).
03 How to use Illia
Illia Cheherst
Kyiv manufacturer · SkyPulse electronics + drone line · chegerst.i@gmail.com
What he brings
- Manufacturing + assembly (13" hexa, 18-22" quads) and a partner network up to ~10,000 fiber FPV/month (one friend ~4,000/mo, a second adds ~4,000).
- In-house electronics (SkyPulse): FC F405 8S, Goro 12S 120A ESCs, plus the X15/X18/X22/Zorya22 drone line. Also a 3-channel + rare-channel anti-jam flight controller.
- Capacity now: ~2,000 kg of parts on hand (≈2,000 13" drones), buildable in ~2 weeks; ~90% chance he or a friend has any requested prototype.
- Prices (USD): copter ~$1,000-2,000; a stronger frame only ~$10 more for a big effect; deep-strike plane-type ~$100,000 (out of scope); fiber last quoted $34/km (2026-05-06).
- Supply-chain knowledge: batteries (Molicel cells, 12-16/pack), fiber (G.657.A2 / Jinxingtong), DOT-Chain efficiency rating.
- Radio test units he will hand you at Dnipro for Dimas.
- Fiber-import channel (19k Telegram parts market) - he confirmed buyers exist for an imported container of 500 boxes of 20/30 km spools.
How to use him (lanes + cautions)
- He builds; you own the software/QA/traceability IP, the customer relationships, the capital, and Western reach.
- His 3-step process: (1) get the spec from the commander, (2) Illia reviews and flags problems, (3) he costs it out (goods + assembly + opex + your fee) and presents price options.
- Failure-diagnosis thesis: the problem is the producer, not the parts, e.g. a 10" battery fitted to a 13/15" drone, weak ESC overheating under load, fiber spec'd 20 km that falls at 16 km.
- Fast validation: his radio units -> Dimas now.
- Caution - cash flow: he refuses to float unpaid production ("Do you have money to pay for it?"); the Agency of Defense Procurement pays net 30, sometimes 60 days. Keep batches small, your capital with lag priced in.
- Open DD: verify SkyPulse ownership before committing capital. (The SageSeller / Amazon-tool link is an unverified research hypothesis, the call only says he had "an Amazon project".)
Open questions / what to ask Illia
- The exact commander drone spec (size, payload, range, battery, ESC, motor, frame) once Dimas sends it, for his diagnosis.
- Where to reliably source good-quality fiber given zero availability in Ukraine and multi-month lead times, is Brazil/other import viable? Good makers ship ~40 days after payment.
- What is your margin/fee and supply model, and who funds the working capital given gov net-30/60 terms?
- Can the commander confirm interest in 18-inch (and VTOL / anti-drone) products, and react to your 3-channel / rare-channel controller? (commander skeptical channel-hopping beats jamming)
- Who is at fault for a given batch's failures, Chinese parts vs the assembling producer? (km gap unverifiable without testing)
- Identify the makers behind Goryn, Uryi, Ronni, Beshket and the anti-drone makers DROZD / GENERAL CHERESHNYA.
- Verify SkyPulse ownership and whether SkyPulse is Illia's own platform, a sub-brand, or a separate manufacturer from KAMIK.
Illia vs the anti-drone partner: Illia is your warm, proven build partner (electronics + network). The anti-drone partner (Rafael's professor friend, anti-drone company + Kyiv manufacturing plant; name not yet captured, the "Yuri requirements brief" is a placeholder identity to confirm) is a potential second manufacturer whose edge is anti-drone + factory plans - complementary, not redundant. Don't promise either exclusivity before the other is scoped.
04 Dimas vs Serhii at a glance
| Dimension | Dimas | Serhii (419th) |
|---|
| Relationship | Paid customer (brigade money) | Donation-first, then production |
| Fiber range | 10-30 km | 15-20 km zone / 25-30 km recon |
| Payload | 1.5-4.5 kg | similar; heavy bombers at night |
| #1 need | Reliable fiber cable + batteries | Signal resilience (anti-jam / relays) |
| Hot extra | Anti-drone | Recon-wing + relay + deep-strike |
| Funding | Brigade budget + e-points | Gov + self-purchase + e-points + charity |
| Your play | Land + expand for revenue | Donate for proof + product direction |
Sources: the project wiki (entities Dimas, Serhii Smirnov, Illia Cheherst; 419th battalion) and the May-29 WhatsApp intel. Drone-model spellings (Goryn, "Ronni") are transcription-tentative - cross-check the Brave1 catalog. Browse the full wiki in Obsidian at wiki/.