MOSCOW, October 17 (RIA Novosti) - German unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), intended for the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) monitoring mission in Ukraine, have limited functionality at low temperatures, Christian Democratic Union (CDU) defense adviser Henning Otte told Bild in an interview.
"In winter, the operation of Luna type drones in the air is limited. If they freeze, they will crash," Otte said.
The drones freeze at a temperature of minus 19 °C ( -2.2 °F). In winter, the temperature at the height between 3000 meters (1864 miles) and 5000 meters (3106 miles) in Ukraine is much lower. The use of such aircraft makes almost no sense and that calls into question the German participation in the OSCE observation mission.
Earlier, German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier announced Bundeswehr's readiness to send two UAVs and "armed escorts" to Ukraine to monitor the cease-fire in Ukraine under the auspices of the OSCE. The organization has not yet responded to the offer of the Bundeswehr.
In April, Kiev launched a military operation in Ukraine’s southeast in response to the local residents' refusal to recognize the new Ukrainian government that came to power as a result of a February coup.
At a September 5 meeting in Minsk, a trilateral Contact Group, consisting of representatives from Russia, Ukraine and the OSCE agreed on a ceasefire. Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko said on September 13 he had officially authorized the OSCE mission to deploy drones to monitor the implementation of the ceasefire in Ukraine.
