By: Tuva Siegel, Warrior Editorial Fellow

A Russian T-72B3A tank fitted with the Arena-M active protection system reportedly failed to stop an incoming First Person View (FPV) drone during what is believed to be the system's first publicly documented battlefield use. According to the Kyiv Post, the emergence of Arena-M-equipped tanks comes as leaked documents reveal "a far broader Russian-Chinese effort to redesign armored warfare around active protection, artificial intelligence (AI) and drone integration."

According to a Warrior Maven article, the rapid proliferation of FPV drones has forced militaries to rethink how tanks are protected, particularly against attacks from above where armored vehicles are traditionally more vulnerable. Rather than relying solely on thicker armor, countries including Russia have increasingly adopted layered defenses such as anti-drone cages, electronic warfare systems, and active protection technologies. As the article explains, the rise of inexpensive drones has created "an entirely new attack profile" that challenges conventional armored warfare, highlighting the growing need for protection against top-attack threats.

Russia has promoted the Arena-M active protection system as one of its answers to this evolving threat. According to a report published by the Russian government newspaper Rossiyskaya Gazeta, Arena-M is designed to detect and intercept incoming threats before they strike the vehicle, providing protection "from any direction, including the upper hemisphere." The system uses radar to identify incoming projectiles and launches defensive munitions intended to destroy them before impact. While these are official Russian claims about the system's intended capabilities, the recent battlefield footage has prompted renewed questions about how effectively the technology performs against FPV drones.

A recent report from the Congressional Budget Office suggests that no single technology is likely to provide complete protection against small drones, reinforcing the importance of a layered approach. The report concludes that countering unmanned aerial systems requires combining multiple defensive measures, including sensors, electronic warfare, and kinetic interceptors, because “layered defenses provide the most comprehensive defense. sUASs are challenging to defend against, and no single system would provide full protection.” The assessment highlights many of the defensive adaptations now appearing on Russian armored vehicles.

Tuva Siegel is an Editorial Fellow at Warrior Maven. She studies English at Kenyon College. Tuva is the author of Drömland, a fictional collection of short stories, and is currently studying weapons and military technology.