This is stated in an investigation by "Important Stories", Reuters and the British Defense Research Institute (RUSI).

The company "Special Technology Center" (STC), which produces drones, came under US sanctions back in 2016 for "helping the GRU in conducting radio-electronic intelligence."

According to RUSI, "Orlan" uses components from American Altera and Xilinx, Texas Instruments, Microchip Technology, Analog Devices, Linear Technology, European STMicroelectronics and NXP Semiconductors, Japanese Renesas Electronics and Saito Seisakusho.

One of the suppliers of foreign components for STC is the Russian company "SMT-Ailogic".

Since 2017, the organization has imported nearly $70 million worth of products to Russia.

STC is the main buyer of SMT-Ilogic - in January-May this year, STC paid it about 1.4 billion Russian rubles ($22 million).

SMT-Ilogic, in turn, buys Western components from the Hong Kong company Asia Pacific Links, which is owned by Russian Anton Trofimov.

Since 2017, Asia Pacific Links has provided SMT-Ilogic with components worth $12 million, with about half of this amount falling on the period since the beginning of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

The investigation notes that almost all the goods that "SMT-Ailogic" imported to Russia came from China.

The customs information states that these goods are of non-military use.

In addition, "SMT-Ilogic" bought components for "Orlans" from the American company Ik Tech.

It was also founded by a Russian with American citizenship named Igor Kazhdan.

From 2018 to 2021, Ik Tech delivered $2.2 million worth of goods to Russia, more than 90% of which were orders from SMT-Ailogic.

Two weeks before Russia's invasion of Ukraine, Khazdan was arrested on charges of smuggling military and dual purpose products into Russia.

  • Russia has been using Orlans since 2014 for reconnaissance and fire control.

    In addition, drones can intercept conversations and jam cellular communications.

    Propaganda messages were also sent from "Orlanov" to the Ukrainian military, the German Bild wrote about it.

    Military experts consider Orlan to be the most massive and successful Russian drone.