Combat drones are going to be brought to Russian classrooms to practically be introduced to students that should learn how to operate them just like in the ongoing special military operation in Ukraine.
Russian schoolchildren will learn the basics of combat drone flying as part of military training classes starting this September.
Basic military training will now return as part of the curriculum for Russian high schoolers in grades 10 and 11 as part of curriculum changes following Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.
Basic military training, had been abolished after the Soviet collapse.
Starting Sept. 1, Russian high schoolers will learn “terrain reconnaissance and enemy unmanned aerial vehicle combat methods” in addition to general knowledge about drones, according to a Defense Ministry statement.
“The program has been approved by Russia’s Education Ministry and will be implemented in education institutions and youth military-patriotic education centers in September,” said the Defense Ministry statement.
“The current army is not just a Kalashnikov assault rifle, but also advanced unmanned vehicles,” said Senator Artyom Sheykin, who proposed the drone training courses.
Around 30,000 university students in Moscow and St. Petersburg are already taking courses on drones, the Vedomosti business daily reported in March, when industry players urged the government to include the subject in Russia’s school curriculum.
