Modern infantry faces unprecedented dangers as drones create omnipresent kill zones. In eastern Ukraine, Ukrainian troops must infiltrate on foot through forests for weeks to reach positions like Myrnohrad, where Russian drones make vehicle movement impossible. American and Israeli jets bombarding Iran demonstrate similar tactical transparency, using layered sensor networks to track and strike targets with precision.

This transparency stems from three elements: advanced sensors, precision firepower, and data networks connecting shooters to targeting systems. Drones serve as powerful avatars combining sensor and shooter capabilities under single operators. The Bayraktar TB2, developed in Turkey, proved decisive in Libya 2019 and later in Syria and Armenia, showing how commercial supply chains enable rapid military innovation cycles.

Ukrainian forces now deploy thousands of first-person view drones daily, accounting for significant casualties among 1.1m-1.4m Russian soldiers killed or wounded. Both sides repurpose bomber drones to deliver food and water, while uncrewed ground vehicles evacuate over 24,000 wounded monthly. The 30km deep attrition belt demonstrates how cheap, ubiquitous sensors have frozen frontal warfare.

Former Ukrainian commander-in-chief General Valery Zaluzhny now calls large-scale maneuver warfare unattainable. Technology has shifted advantages toward defenders while enabling great powers to stumble into conflicts they cannot decisively win.