When it comes to war, people often think of giant defense industrial corporations (Military-Industrial Complex) with multi-billion dollar weapons contracts lasting decades. However, FPV Drones and small UAVs have completely broken this monopoly, creating a new form of warfare: “Open source warfare”, where the boundary between civilian and military is completely blurred.

1. Decentralized Supply Chain: Arms “Startup” In The Garage

The slowness of traditional defense contractors cannot keep up with the rate of UAV attrition on the modern battlefield (at times, thousands of FPVs are lost every day due to electronic warfare or being shot down). This leads to the birth of a decentralized supply chain.

Instead of giant factories vulnerable to enemy satellites and missiles, drone production is now broken down into thousands of apartments, basements and garages.

  • 3D Printing Technology: Parts such as bullet holders, tail wings to stabilize falling projectiles for grenades, or camera covers are all designed on computers and 3D printed using PETG or PLA plastic.

Any software engineer or mechatronics student can become a cog in the war machine, creating a deadly “startup economy” with a version rate improvement (update version) measured in weeks, instead of years like traditional weapons.

2. Digital Warfare and Crowdfunding

Modern UAVs are not only lethal weapons, they are also filming machines that produce content (Content Creator) for the psychological warfare front. Thanks to satellite internet connections like Starlink, first-person perspective (FPV) video of a drone crashing into a target can be cut, mixed with music and posted to Telegram or X (Twitter) just minutes after the actual explosion takes place.

This “Gamification” of war creates an unprecedented closed loop:

  1. Drone records images of destroying the enemy.

  2. The video was distributed to raise morale and demonstrate strength.

  3. Global viewers are attracted and contribute money directly to the electronic currency wallet (Crypto) or credit card of the combat unit.

  4. Fundraising funds continue to be used to buy components to assemble new drones.

There has even been a donation service to “write a name or message on the projectile” before the drone drops it on the target. The war is now funded directly (peer-to-peer) by people watching behind phone screens half a world away.

3. “The Buzzing Sky” Syndrome: An Infantry’s Obsession

For soldiers on the ground, small UAVs create a completely new form of psychological trauma. In previous wars, trenches and forests were safe havens. But with FPV Drones and UAVs equipped with thermal cameras, the concept of “hiding” no longer exists.

The humming sound of drone propellers (often called “mosquito noise” or “lawn mower” by soldiers) becomes the sound of death. Unlike the hiss of falling artillery shells and instant explosion, a UAV can hover over a soldier’s head for dozens of minutes, spreading extreme panic and a feeling of helplessness before it decides to attack. Military medical reports have documented fear of open spaces and fear of small engine sounds in returning veterans.

4. Moral Injury

Paradoxically, UAV operators far from the also battlefield face equally severe psychological trauma.

Unlike a fighter pilot bombing from an altitude of 10,000 meters or an artilleryman shooting targets through lifeless coordinates, the UAV operator has a terrifying “closeness” to the victim. High-definition cameras allow them to observe targets for days. They see the goal of eating, living, talking with teammates. And then, they pressed the button, directly saw the bullets explode and witnessed the entire process of the target’s death on the HD screen.

The most devastating thing is the spatial disconnection. Contrary to infantry who fight and live together on the front lines to share the pressure, a UAV pilot can perform an 8-hour shift, destroy many lives through the screen at a secure base, and then drive home to have dinner and pick up the children from school like a normal office worker. The rupture between these two contrasting realities causes serious Moral Injury, leading to extremely high rates of depression and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among the ranks of UAV control units.