Russia pressures university students to become wartime drone pilots

Russia has launched an intensified recruitment drive to attract university students to join its newly formed Unmanned Systems Forces as drone pilots, offering high salaries, promises of no front-line combat duty, and free tuition upon return . At least 91 universities and 112 vocational schools across Russia are actively recruiting students, employing tactics ranging from high-pressure sales to outright deception . The Defense Ministry is conducting direct wartime recruitment in all federal educational institutions under the cover of a "special contract," though students may end up serving as ordinary soldiers on the front line in Ukraine .

Source: Ars Technica | 2026-05-15