A civilian drone that has deviated from its route or is in an emergency zone can be forced to land with a single secure command. For this purpose, Russia is developing a special "red button" connected to the state system "ERA-GLONASS". The technology has already been tested in Sakhalin, and by 2026, the system for notifying drone operators is planned to be ready.
The mechanism was developed by JSC "GLONASS" and the "Element" group of companies. It can be connected to any civilian drone. Inside the tracker, there is a software and hardware complex "Zvezda", created by the Research Institute of Molecular Electronics. The electronic module operates on a domestic microchip, developed at NIIME and manufactured at the "Mikron" factory.
If the drone goes beyond the permitted flight boundaries or an emergency occurs, the controlling authorities will be able to transmit a command for a safe landing via "ERA-GLONASS". It will be received by the chip built into the tracker. The transmission will be cryptographically protected, so outsiders will not be able to intercept, change, or substitute the signal.
All violations will be stored on a special platform. In the future, this data can be taken into account when issuing permits for new flights. The higher the risk of an incident and the more severe the possible consequences, the stricter the checks and route approval may be.
The system is needed not only for emergency landing. The electronic identifier allows for precise identification of a specific aircraft, verification of flight legality, transmission of its coordinates and current status, and secure data exchange with state infrastructure. Previously, foreign devices and programs were often used for remote identification, telemetry, and flight control.
In the future, the "red button" is planned to be used not only in the air. The technology is planned to be scaled to unmanned transport operating on land and water, including autonomous trucks that transport goods along federal highways.
In 2025, civilian drones performed 120,022 flights – almost six times more than a year earlier. They were most often used in logistics, agriculture, territory monitoring, and aerial photography.