Ring wing: How an old idea from the 1980s has been repurposed for the Ukraine war

An unusual-looking Russian drone was intercepted by Ukrainian air defences and, on closer inspection, appeared to be a first-person view quadcopter housed in a ring-shaped wing.

In the 1980s, US aviation giant Lockheed Martin flirted with an old idea, known as closed-wing design for the airline industry. 

Fast forward to the war in Ukraine, and the technology seems to have resurfaced in Russia as the need for attack drones to fly further and carry a deadlier payload has grown.

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In our video above, Stuart Rumble explains the ring wing as well as the new generation of amphibious drones.