‘Beyond baguettes and bagels’: Tambov baking plant starts production of reconnaissance drones

A Tambov baking plant has expanded its product line to include reconnaissance drones. The improbable expansion was reported by Rossiyskaya Gazeta, citing the industrial bakery’s deputy director Alexander Rudik.

The plant has previously donated baked goods, medications, and equipment to the military units taking part in the invasion of Ukraine, as part of a “patriotic” propaganda campaign involving a number of industrial concerns around Tambov.

When these donations were met with a thankless reply, “what we really need is drones,” the management decided to set the bakery apart by starting to build quadrocopters.

Using parts available in DIY stores, the bakers assembled a test batch of UAVs and, Rudik claims, got some “valuable feedback” from the military. The next batch of 16 improved reconnaissance drones is supposedly due to be delivered to the frontline by the end of this month.

According to the Russian outlet, the management thinks that up to 200 drones can be assembled at the baking plant on a monthly basis in the future, and some of the details may be generated on a 3D printer.

It’s been only a few days since Vladimir Putin boasted about Russia’s military and its huge advantages over Ukraine’s, in both weapons and equipment.