The command of Russia's drone forces will be held by Yuri Vaganov, a businessman from the Moscow region without a military education, known as 'Yura Unitaz'.
His appointment is reported by Z-bloggers, as noted by "Meduza". The "Russian Service of the BBC" confirmed this.
Yuri Vaganov, a businessman and volunteer from the Moscow region without a military education, has been appointed commander of the drone forces of the Russian Armed Forces. This was initially reported by Z-bloggers. Sources from the "Russian Service of the BBC" in the Russian drone manufacturing industry confirm this information. There has been no official announcement regarding the appointment.
Russian Defense Minister Andrei Belousov stated back in December 2024 about plans to form drone forces. At that time, he mentioned that the creation of this new type of troops was expected to be completed in the third quarter of 2025. In November 2025, the Russian Ministry of Defense reported the completion of the establishment of this new type of troops. The spokesperson on this matter was Colonel Sergey Ishtuganov, the deputy commander of the new type of troops, but the name of the commander was not disclosed at that time.
As noted by the "Russian Service of the BBC", the community of pro-war bloggers and those involved with drones are outraged by Vaganov's appointment to this position.
"The commander appointed is a person known to many in the Special Military Operation (SMO) as 'Yura Unitaz'. A person who not only lacks military education. <…> Before the start of the SMO, he sold plumbing, hence such a nickname. And then he became a monopolist in supplying FPV drones to the Russian military," quotes the BBC Z-blogger, Captain 3rd Rank in reserve Maxim Klimov, who talked about Vaganov's appointment during a stream on December 21.
Another Z-blogger, Rostislav Marchenko, commenting on Vaganov's appointment, noted that the military do not like him due to his administrative push for his product.
A source from the Russian drone manufacturing industry explained the decision to appoint Vaganov to the command position by stating that under the "colonel of the fire troops" there is always "some crafty ***, who knows how to set the table and heat the bathhouse". According to him, "anyone who disagrees with this state of affairs is potentially an enemy and a foreign agent".
"It's an ordinary story. That's how they all are. They fight with their left foot. This is a commercial project. So what if people die?" commented the appointment in a conversation with journalists a former Russian serviceman.
As journalists found out, Vaganov is a native of Stepanakert, and before the full-scale Russian-Ukrainian war, he was engaged in business in Elektrostal. Among other things, he managed the trade of building materials and products, plumbing, real estate operations, and was a co-owner of a poultry farm.
During the coronavirus pandemic, Vaganov was part of the Moscow regional headquarters of the "People's Front" and helped the medical staff of the Elektrostal city hospital with medical masks. After the full-scale invasion of Ukraine by the Russian Federation, the businessman delivered humanitarian aid to the self-proclaimed DPR and LPR, and the propaganda channel Russia Today made a film about him titled "Volunteer".
Over the years of the war, Vaganov has established various connections and has become one of the main suppliers of FPV drones for the Russian army. He set up drone production based on the volunteer battalion named after Sudoplatov. In January 2024, it was reported that the Armed Forces of Ukraine struck a training ground where operators of the "Judgment Day" drone project of the Sudoplatov battalion were being trained. This incident, along with the monopoly in supplying drones to the state, caused dissatisfaction with Vaganov and the "Sudoplatovites" among supporters and participants of the war.
"You may remember the disputes surrounding the sole supplier of drones 'Sudoplatov' for the Ministry of Defense, which later got the operators killed at the training ground? The essence is that a businessman from Elektrostal, who sold plumbing before the war, proclaimed himself a GRU general and began to aggressively promote himself within the Ministry of Defense's procurement structure," said war correspondent Roman Saponkov about Vaganov's military career.
In October 2025, the head of the Russian Orthodox Church, Patriarch Kirill, awarded Vaganov the Order of the Blessed Prince Dmitry Donskoy of the 3rd degree. At the ceremony, the businessman was presented as a lieutenant colonel and advisor to the deputy minister of defense for armaments. As noted by the BBC, if Vaganov's appointment is confirmed, he is expected to receive general's epaulettes as the commander of a separate type of troops.
