Ukraine appoints drone warfare pioneer to overhaul air defense

Tuesday 20 January 2026 - 08:50

By: Dakir Madiha

Ukraine appoints drone warfare pioneer to overhaul air defense

President Volodymyr Zelensky named Pavlo Yelizarov as deputy commander of the Ukrainian Air Force on January 19, tasking him with reshaping the country's air defense strategy amid preparations for intensified Russian aerial assaults. This appointment positions a battle-tested drone expert at the forefront of efforts to erect what Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov called an anti-drone dome over Ukraine. Yelizarov, known by the call sign Lazar, will oversee development of small-scale air defense systems, including mobile firing groups and interceptor drones, shifting Ukraine's approach from reactive to proactive defense. Zelensky declared in his nightly video address that the system will be transformed.

Before the war, Yelizarov worked as a businessman and television producer, creating the political debate show Svoboda Slova, which clashed with Zelensky's Servant of the People party. Following Russia's full-scale invasion in 2022, he joined Ukraine's territorial defense and later founded the Lazar group, a specialized drone unit attached to the National Guard. Under his leadership, the unit emerged as one of Ukraine's most effective defense forces. Fedorov noted it destroyed Russian military equipment worth over $13 billion—equivalent to about one in five Russian tanks lost to Ukrainian forces. The group pioneered integrating Starlink satellite terminals into heavy bomber drones, enabling operators to fly from secure rear positions rather than exposed front-line spots. Fedorov praised Yelizarov as one who has proven effective in modern warfare.

The move comes as Ukraine endures its harshest winter since the war's outset, with Russian air campaigns ravaging energy infrastructure. Russia launched up to 100,000 drones against Ukraine in 2025, Fedorov said, striking residential buildings and critical facilities. This week alone, Russian forces deployed over 1,300 attack drones, about 1,050 guided bombs, and 29 missiles, killing two people and causing widespread blackouts. Yelizarov's mandate involves scaling his unit's successes into a national defense framework. Fedorov outlined the goal as establishing a preventive anti-drone shield that neutralizes threats before impact. The new defense minister, who took office January 14, signaled more personnel changes soon as part of a broader military restructuring in early 2026.