Russian "Gerans" gained an advantage not only due to design improvements: the Financial Times highlighted the ability to quickly adapt drones to accumulated experience and launch new versions into mass production. According to the newspaper, this is facilitated by centralized production, while the low cost of the devices compared to missiles allows for scaling production without comparable costs.
FT notes that the production system makes it possible to quickly make changes to drones after their use and transfer the acquired experience directly to subsequent modifications. Due to this, the development of the family does not proceed in separate large modernization stages, but through the sequential appearance of new variants.
The newspaper considers the economic factor no less important. According to FT, "Gerans" cost only a small fraction of the price of missiles, so a cheaper drone can not only be produced in large quantities, but also have its design updated faster without a sharp increase in costs.
Against this background, FT also draws attention to the transition from early versions to more complex devices. New models have received higher speed, increased payload, thermal imaging systems, AI-powered guidance elements, and jamming protection.