Russian Schoolchildren Massively Involved in Development and Production of Combat Drones

Hundreds of thousands of Russian schoolchildren are being involved in the creation of military drones under the guise of educational programs. Children are being trained to program, operate, and assemble combat UAVs used in attacks on Ukraine, The Insider reports.

One key tool is the Berloga platform — a gamified program launched by Vladimir Putin after the war began. At first, children "protect energy honey from cyber bees." Later, they learn to operate quadcopters, program flight paths, and develop software. The main incentive? A 10-point bonus to their Unified State Exam (EGE) score — a powerful motivator that’s driven mass participation.

The next step in involving minors in military tech is through specialized competitions like Big Challenges, where students submit projects that are later adapted for military use. In 2024, for example, high schoolers were tasked with designing a super-heavy launch vehicle with a water-based launch system — a project with clear military potential.

While students are forbidden from explicitly acknowledging the military purpose of their work, both participants and instructors know the true goals:

“When we defended our project, we weren’t allowed to say it was for war, so we made up civilian applications. But we all knew the real purpose,” one student explains.

The director of the Center for Unmanned Systems at Samara University has openly stated that “talented kids must be identified while they’re still young and given the right direction.” Officials admit that children’s ideas are in demand by defense contractors and are “refined and implemented in practice.”

But the state isn’t just enlisting kids in development — it’s drawing them into production as well. At the Alabuga drone center, schoolchildren are invited to learn how to assemble and operate UAVs. They’re promised “adult-level” wages — up to 100,000 rubles a month.

“Why Alabuga? Because building strike drones that destroy the enemy is cool!” reads one of the program’s flyers.

Recruiting minors to develop and manufacture weapons is not only morally reprehensible — it’s a violation of international child protection laws and places children's lives at risk. By placing teens inside military-industrial facilities, the state effectively turns them into human targets.

For example, on July 1, a drone strike hit the Kupol defense plant in Izhevsk — a facility known for UAV production. The attack killed three people and injured 57 others, underscoring the very real danger of putting children in harm’s way.