Molniya: The wooden FPV drone that's made in Russia and copied in Ukraine

The Molniya fixed-wing FPV drone is getting a lot of use by frontline soldiers in Russia's war on Ukraine.

Having found a covert position, drone operators ready it for launch.

It can be carried by three soldiers in 10 pieces in their backpacks.

• Ukraine's Sting interceptor drone to defend the skies from Shahed UAVs
• Izdeliye 305: The helicopter-launched missile that Russia reckons is invincible
• Number of Russian drone attacks reaches highest level since war began, says MOD

This might sound a lot, but the kit is actually said to be very light, easy to assemble and low cost for a drone of its kind.

It's launched using a pneumatic catapult and it's designed not to come back.

It can operate for up to 40 minutes for up to 30km and can reach speeds of up to 80km/h.

The fuselage is made of two longitudinal aluminium tubes, but the rest, including the centre section and wings, is plywood.

Inside are the control systems and electronics, batteries and there is a camera in the nose.

Video signals are transmitted to the operator's glasses.

But the Molniya drone isn't having everything its own way.

Despite being extensively used, Ukrainian drones are fighting back with some success.

And its simple design, with its low cost and high combat effectiveness, is now being copied by Ukraine, using captured examples to take the best from the Russian version.

If the Ukrainian variant mirrors the Russian drone accurately, it'll replicate its 1.5m wingspan, 10kg weight and its combat load capability of up to 5kg.