Albania receives unidentified kamikaze drone previously used in Ukraine

Albania has received unknown kamikaze drones that were previously used in Ukraine against Russian invaders.

Photos of the strike drones were published on March 18, 2025, during the visit of Albanian Defense Minister Pirro Vengu to the Kuçova air base.

NATO invested over 50 million euros in this Cold War-era air base and its reconstruction was completed in March 2024.

Work began in January 2022. Since then, the track has been updated, a fence has been erected, and a security and perimeter protection system has been installed.

The base also hosts Bayraktar TB2 attack drones purchased by Turkey from the Baykar company, with the purchase agreement signed in December 2022.

It is now known that the Albanian Air Force has received another product, believed to be of Turkish manufacture – attack drones referred to online as YiHA-III. However, no official confirmation of this name has been found.

There were no previous reports of them being ordered from Albania. Similarly, other users who are documented to own them have not announced their purchase.

Unidentified drones
The first recorded sighting of drones is believed to be in occupied territory of Ukraine, where Russian military personnel displayed the wreckage of an unknown type of attack drone. 

Drones of this design have also targeted facilities in the Belgorod region.

Militaryi published an analysis by DanielR from social media X, where he described an unknown drone that looked like a Pakistani kamikaze drone that was part of the country's air force.

In one of the photos from Albania, a similarity in the YX serial numbers is noticeable (YiHA: if the products shown in Pakistan are marked as YX-68, YX-69, and YX-72, the Albanian one is labeled YX-121).

DanielR also assumed that these devices are the result of a joint development of the Pakistani company RE&RP Group and the Turkish company Baykar. Another option is that the Pakistani company has established the production of Turkish products.

What else is known about these drones?
These UAVs are operated by Albania, Ukraine, and the aforementioned Pakistan, and they have also appeared in Azerbaijan, although no information has been published there either.

Two types of drone launches can be observed there:

Using a runway and landing gear;
Using a catapult.
From the published images of the wreckage, it is now known that the engine is a DLE 170 internal combustion engine, manufactured in China.

The fuel tank capacity is sufficient to cover several hundred kilometers. This is sufficient to hit targets such as radar stations, SAM system components, electronic warfare (EW) systems and electronic intelligence (ELINT) systems, among others.

The effectiveness of the strike is increased by the warhead, which, according to Russian propagandists, is used by the OMTAS portable anti-tank missile system (ATGM), introduced in 2021. The manufacturer does not disclose exact specifications.

The OMTAS ATGM was developed by Roketsan based on the UMTAS (Uzun Menzilli Tanksavar Sistemi) air-launched anti-tank missile system. These missiles are now used to equip Turkish aircraft, helicopters and UAVs.

This may indicate collaboration between several Turkish manufacturers in creating the attack drone.

Although little is known about these devices so far, it can be asserted that Albania has received a significant boost in its self-defense and strike capabilities with their effective tactical use.