Ukrainian troops have used an amphibious unmanned ground vehicle (UGV) for the first time in a logistics mission, sending it more than 40 kilometers (24.85 miles) across land and water.
A unit from one of Ukraine’s separate mechanized brigades tapped the domestically developed UGV to transport provisions and ammunition to frontline positions, according to Ukraine’s Ministry of Defence (MoD).
The system was modified over several months with input from military personnel and experience from frontline operations. Brave1, Ukraine’s defense innovation cluster, provided grant funding to support development of the system.
Its ability to move between land and water addresses a problem that conventional ground robots face around rivers, canals, and marshland. The MoD said the amphibious vehicle can transition from land to water within seconds, allowing one platform to cover routes that would otherwise require different means of transport.
Ukraine Scales Up UGV Logistics
Ukraine has been rapidly increasing its use and procurement of UGVs, with logistics emerging as one of their main battlefield roles.
More than 22,000 Ukrainian-made UGVs had been contracted for the country’s armed forces by July 2026, according to Ukraine’s Defence Procurement Agency.
Most were logistics systems, followed by engineering and combat platforms.
Operational use has also grown. Ukrainian defense authorities reported that ground robots conducted more than 100,000 logistics and evacuation missions from January to August 2026 alone.