美国国家公共电台 NPR--Encore: Drones are a powerful weapon in the Russia-Ukraine war

Encore: Drones are a powerful weapon in the Russia-Ukraine war

Transcript¹

The Ukraine army's relatively² unsophisticated drones have become very important as intelligence gathering³ tools. (Story first aired on All Things Considered on July 30, 2022.)

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UKRAINE INVASION — EXPLAINED

In the Russia-Ukraine war, drones are one of the most powerful weapons

ASMA KHALID, HOST:

In Ukraine, technology plays a big role on the battlefield. Both sides use drones to try to gain an advantage by watching their adversaries⁴' movements from above. NPR's Jason Beaubien spent time with a Ukrainian drone surveillance unit in southern Ukraine near Russian-occupied parts of Kherson.

SACHA: (Non-English language spoken).

JASON BEAUBIEN, BYLINE⁵: In a patch of trees between a freshly cut wheat field and a plot of iridescent⁶ sunflowers, Sacha is sitting in the back of a camouflaged⁷ van. He's watching a video feed of a drone his team just sent into Russian-occupied territory to check on a village.

SACHA: (Through interpreter) We got this task from the intelligence this morning, so we're flying there now to check what is in this populated place - village.

BEAUBIEN: During peace times, this strip of trees would be a windbreak between the agricultural fields. Now it's dotted with coffin-sized pits for Sacha and his colleagues to dive into in case the Russians start shelling their mobile base.

SACHA: (Through interpreter) The groups of air intelligence are usually hunted because we are the eyes. What we see you can't see with the binoculars⁸.

BEAUBIEN: This Ukrainian drone unit is named Karlson, after a flying character from a popular Swedish children's book. They've allowed us to visit them under the condition that we don't disclose their full names or location. They have various small drones that you can buy at an electronics store for a few thousand dollars. On this day, they're operating their largest fixed-wing drone, which they raised tens of thousands of dollars to purchase online. It looks like a miniature plane with a camera mounted on its nose. As the drone scans the village, Sacha says it appears most of the residents have fled.

SACHA: (Through interpreter) Oh, and - you can see the cows. You know, they do not belong to anyone anymore.

BEAUBIEN: Amidst the wandering animals and deserted⁹ houses, he spots what could be a dug-in Russian tank. Sacha makes a note of its position. He says, later, he'll review the high-definition video recording¹⁰ being stored on board the drone and zoom¹¹ in closer on the potential tank.

In this section of the front lines, cell phone and GPS signals are being jammed by both the Russians and the Ukrainians. The Karlson team uses a mobile Starlink connection donated by Elon Musk's satellite-based internet company. If they see a potential target, they use the Starlink connection to communicate with other military units.

SACHA: (Through interpreter) Sometimes, if we see the convoy¹², for example, we are in touch with artillery¹³ unit, and we give them the coordinates¹⁴, and they start shelling.

BEAUBIEN: The war in Ukraine is predominantly an artillery war, stretching for hundreds of miles along a front line in eastern and southern Ukraine. The head of the Karlson team calls artillery the fist of war, and drones help that fist punch more accurately¹⁵. The Karlson team is officially a territorial¹⁶ defense¹⁷ unit. It's made up of 23 volunteers, all men, mostly in their 30s, from the Dnipro area. Prior to the Russian invasion, none of them had military experience.

PLAYBOY: Everybody was civilian¹⁸.

BEAUBIEN: The commander of the unit, who goes by the name Playboy, used to run his own business.

PLAYBOY: We have a technical specialist, IT specialist.

BEAUBIEN: Sacha used to be a politician.

Denis Pasko, who is not part of the Karlson unit, trains Ukrainian soldiers on using drones both for surveillance and, in his words, "to drop explosives on the Russians' heads." Even if some of the drones are sold on Amazon as toys, he says, this is serious, dangerous combat.

DENIS PASKO: You need to be close to the front line, so it's really dangerous. And if anybody knows your position, you can be dead.

BEAUBIEN: Drones can quickly and safely do what used to be the job of human reconnaissance squads¹⁹. But Pasko says if a drone is caught by the enemy, it can give away a lot of information.

PASKO: It have the geo-position of the operator, and it can keep history from the turning on and a history of all the places where it was flying, where it was searching for something, and all that video.

BEAUBIEN: The Karlson unit, in addition to doing surveillance, is also trying to track and intercept²⁰ Russian drones. It's an aerial game of spy vs. spy. But Sacha says the work also involves a lot of hours of sitting in a van, hidden in the trees, watching a raw video stream on a laptop.

SACHA: (Through interpreter) So this is our task. We sit the whole day and watch, and then we come back to the base and watch it thoroughly²¹.

BEAUBIEN: In the distance, shells can be heard exploding. Sacha doesn't so much as look up from the laptop. Outgoing, he mutters. One of the other team members is practicing throwing a knife at a tree. Sasha keeps scanning the video monitor as the drone keeps scanning the village across the front line. Jason Beaubien, NPR News, in southern Ukraine.

1 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

2 relatively   

adv.比较...地，相对地

参考例句：

• The rabbit is a relatively recent introduction in Australia.兔子是相对较新引入澳大利亚的物种。
• The operation was relatively painless.手术相对来说不痛。

3 gathering   

n.集会，聚会，聚集

参考例句：

• He called on Mr. White to speak at the gathering.他请怀特先生在集会上讲话。
• He is on the wing gathering material for his novels.他正忙于为他的小说收集资料。

4 adversaries   

n.对手，敌手( adversary的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• That would cause potential adversaries to recoil from a challenge. 这会迫使潜在的敌人在挑战面前退缩。 来自辞典例句
• Every adversaries are more comfortable with a predictable, coherent America. 就连敌人也会因有可以预料的，始终一致的美国而感到舒服得多。 来自辞典例句

5 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

6 iridescent   

adj.彩虹色的，闪色的

参考例句：

• The iridescent bubbles were beautiful.这些闪着彩虹般颜色的大气泡很美。
• Male peacocks display their iridescent feathers for prospective female mates.雄性孔雀为了吸引雌性伴侣而展现了他们彩虹色的羽毛。

7 camouflaged   

v.隐蔽( camouflage的过去式和过去分词 )；掩盖；伪装，掩饰

参考例句：

• We camouflaged in the bushes and no one saw us. 我们隐藏在灌木丛中没有被人发现。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• They camouflaged in bushes. 他们隐蔽在灌木丛中。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 binoculars   

n.双筒望远镜

参考例句：

• He watched the play through his binoculars.他用双筒望远镜看戏。
• If I had binoculars,I could see that comet clearly.如果我有望远镜，我就可以清楚地看见那颗彗星。

9 deserted   

adj.荒芜的，荒废的，无人的，被遗弃的

参考例句：

• The deserted village was filled with a deathly silence.这个荒废的村庄死一般的寂静。
• The enemy chieftain was opposed and deserted by his followers.敌人头目众叛亲离。

10 recording   

n.录音，记录

参考例句：

• How long will the recording of the song take?录下这首歌得花多少时间？
• I want to play you a recording of the rehearsal.我想给你放一下彩排的录像。

11 zoom   

n.急速上升；v.突然扩大，急速上升

参考例句：

• The airplane's zoom carried it above the clouds.飞机的陡直上升使它飞到云层之上。
• I live near an airport and the zoom of passing planes can be heard night and day.我住在一个飞机场附近，昼夜都能听到飞机飞过的嗡嗡声。

12 convoy   

vt.护送，护卫，护航；n.护送；护送队

参考例句：

• The convoy was snowed up on the main road.护送队被大雪困在干路上了。
• Warships will accompany the convoy across the Atlantic.战舰将护送该船队过大西洋。

13 artillery   

n.(军)火炮，大炮；炮兵(部队)

参考例句：

• This is a heavy artillery piece.这是一门重炮。
• The artillery has more firepower than the infantry.炮兵火力比步兵大。

14 coordinates   

n.相配之衣物；坐标( coordinate的名词复数 )；（颜色协调的）配套服装；[复数]女套服；同等重要的人（或物）v.使协调，使调和( coordinate的第三人称单数 )；协调；协同；成为同等

参考例句：

• The town coordinates on this map are 695037. 该镇在这幅地图上的坐标是695037。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, headed by the Emergency Relief Coordinator, coordinates all UN emergency relief. 联合国人道主义事务协调厅在紧急救济协调员领导下，负责协调联合国的所有紧急救济工作。 来自《简明英汉词典》

15 accurately   

adv.准确地，精确地

参考例句：

• It is hard to hit the ball accurately.准确地击中球很难。
• Now scientists can forecast the weather accurately.现在科学家们能准确地预报天气。

16 territorial   

adj.领土的，领地的

参考例句：

• The country is fighting to preserve its territorial integrity.该国在为保持领土的完整而进行斗争。
• They were not allowed to fish in our territorial waters.不允许他们在我国领海捕鱼。

17 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

18 civilian   

adj.平民的，民用的，民众的

参考例句：

• There is no reliable information about civilian casualties.关于平民的伤亡还没有确凿的信息。
• He resigned his commission to take up a civilian job.他辞去军职而从事平民工作。

19 squads   

n.（军队中的）班( squad的名词复数 )；（暗杀）小组；体育运动的运动（代表）队；（对付某类犯罪活动的）警察队伍

参考例句：

• Anti-riot squads were called out to deal with the situation. 防暴队奉命出动以对付这一局势。 来自辞典例句
• Three squads constitute a platoon. 三个班组成一个排。 来自辞典例句

20 intercept   

vt.拦截，截住，截击

参考例句：

• His letter was intercepted by the Secret Service.他的信被特工处截获了。
• Gunmen intercepted him on his way to the airport.持枪歹徒在他去机场的路上截击了他。

21 thoroughly   

adv.完全地，彻底地，十足地

参考例句：

• The soil must be thoroughly turned over before planting.一定要先把土地深翻一遍再下种。
• The soldiers have been thoroughly instructed in the care of their weapons.士兵们都系统地接受过保护武器的训练。