What happened
Ukraine’s CODE 9.2 Regiment conducted two battlefield medical evacuations in one week using a SkyFall StarGate unmanned casualty-evacuation drone. The drone extracted two severely wounded soldiers from gray-zone positions near the Russian border after ground vehicles could not reach them. On one mission, StarGate flew nearly 30 kilometers to the casualty and another 30 kilometers back with the wounded soldier aboard despite reported GPS jamming, using onboard AI-based navigation and its pilots. SkyFall helped prepare the operations, while Vampire heavy strike drones engaged opposing positions during the missions.
Why it matters
The missions show how a purpose-built unmanned casualty-evacuation platform can reach wounded personnel when ground evacuation is inaccessible or too dangerous. StarGate’s evacuation module uses certified medical stretchers and can carry up to 150 kilograms at an advertised maximum speed of 105 km/h. According to the unit’s account, onboard navigation, AI systems and redundant communications allowed the drone to continue operating under GPS jamming—addressing a major battlefield constraint. The two missions have also led CODE 9.2 to plan crew training and a dedicated aerial medical-evacuation section within its medical company, potentially making the capability more repeatable.
What to watch
CODE 9.2’s planned move from individual evacuation missions to dedicated training and an aerial medical-evacuation section within its medical company.
Sources
- Militarnyi — Ukraine — 30 кілометрів з пораненим: CODE 9.2 провели дві повітряні евакуації дроном StarGate (2026-10-26T20:08:37.000Z)
- Defender Media — Ukrainian — Бійці CODE 9.2 евакуювали двох поранених повітряним кейсеваком StarGate від SkyFall (2026-10-27T10:38:43.000Z)