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Protector UGV with Tavria Combat Module Marks Ukraine’s Shift to Remote Ground Combat.
Ukrainian Armor has completed live-fire range trials of its Protector unmanned ground vehicle equipped with the Tavria-12.7 remote weapon station, firing a Browning M2 heavy machine gun under full remote control.
On November 24, 2025, Ukrainian company Ukrainian Armor announced successful live-fire tests of its Protector unmanned ground complex fitted with the Tavria-12.7 remotely controlled combat module. Conducted against the backdrop of a high-intensity drone and artillery war, these trials confirm that the heavy logistics UGV first unveiled in 2024 is evolving into a fully weaponized platform. By combining a truck-sized robotic chassis with a heavy machine-gun turret, Ukraine is experimenting with ways to project firepower without exposing crews to the front line. The program illustrates how the country’s defense industry is trying to adapt to a battlefield dominated by FPV drones and precision artillery, where any exposed vehicle or crew quickly becomes a target.
Protector is a truck-sized unmanned ground vehicle fitted with a Tavria 12.7 remote weapon station that lets Ukrainian forces deliver heavy machine gun fire from cover under full remote control (Picture Source: Ukrainian Armor)
Protector is a heavy unmanned ground vehicle designed and manufactured by Ukrainian Armor to perform logistics, evacuation and direct-fire support missions in high-risk areas. The 4x4 platform, with a combat weight of roughly 4 tons, combines a 3-liter internal-combustion engine of about 190 hp with all-wheel drive, run-flat tires and STANAG 4569 Level 1 ballistic protection, allowing it to carry payloads of around 700 kg and reach a declared top speed of up to 60 km/h, with recent field reports indicating operational speeds closer to 45 km/h depending on terrain. The vehicle offers a driving range of roughly 400–500 km per refuelling, while control ranges remain in the order of several to a dozen kilometres from the control station, depending on terrain and communications configuration. Earlier iterations were presented primarily as robotic “mules” for ammunition resupply, casualty evacuation and engineering tasks, integrated into digital situational-awareness suites such as ICoMWare to operate as nodes in a broader command-and-control network. The latest tests, however, show the open cargo deck now occupied by the Tavria-12.7 remote weapon module, transforming the platform from a logistics UGV into a mobile remote-controlled weapons carrier capable of providing suppressive fire, route protection and fire support to infantry assaults.
The Tavria-12.7 combat module itself is a stabilized, remotely operated weapon station mounting the M2 Browning 12.7×99 mm heavy machine gun, coupled to an electro-optical sighting package and a digital fire-control system. Designed by Ukrainian Armor and codified by the Ministry of Defence of Ukraine in 2024, Tavria can be installed both on armored vehicles such as the M113 and Novator and on robotic platforms like Protector, and earlier variants have also been configured for 14.5 mm and 7.62 mm machine guns. According to company CEO Vladyslav Belbas, the recent firing campaign involved engaging targets at multiple ranges in both static and on-the-move modes; the firm reports that dispersion and hit probability remained within acceptable limits even while manoeuvring, validating the stabilisation and control algorithms of the module when installed on an unmanned chassis. Beyond ground targets such as light armor, vehicles and infantry, the module is intended to engage low-flying aerial threats, including helicopters and small unmanned aircraft, reflecting the growing requirement for every frontline platform to contribute to counter-drone defence.
Unlike earlier generations of Ukrainian UGVs, typically small tracked or wheeled robots armed with light weapons or used as kamikaze platforms, the Protector represents a different class: a full‑size robotic truck designed to operate alongside mechanized units and absorb risks traditionally borne by crewed armored vehicles. Its payload capacity and operational range align more closely with Western heavy UGV concepts such as IDV’s Viking or BAE Systems’ ATLAS, which integrate logistics, direct fire, and sensor roles into a single unmanned platform. However, Protector is being developed under the immediate pressures of wartime, with a strong emphasis on affordability and rapid deployment. By mounting the proven Browning M2 on a domestically produced remote weapon station already cleared for service, Ukrainian Armor capitalizes on existing ammunition stocks and training while avoiding the integration challenges of more complex cannon systems. Operationally, the key advantage lies in delivering .50‑caliber firepower against fortified Russian positions or contested supply routes without exposing a gunner in a turret or a driver in a cab vulnerable to drones and artillery fragments.
Strategically, systems such as the Protector equipped with the Tavria-12.7 illustrate a wider transformation in the war in Ukraine, and in modern land warfare, toward distributed, remotely operated firepower and integrated human-machine operations. Ukrainian forces already deploy thousands of aerial drones for reconnaissance and strike missions; introducing heavy unmanned ground vehicles (UGVs) extends this approach to the ground domain, enabling remote cargo delivery and direct-fire capability. As Russia develops its own armed UGVs and explores similar technologies, weaponized platforms like the Protector signal the onset of a robotics arms race along the front lines, where survivability increasingly relies on being less detectable, cheaper to replace, and easier to produce than traditional manned vehicles. For Ukraine, the capacity to design, manufacture, and continually improve such systems domestically, under wartime conditions and at scale, enhances technological sovereignty and creates future export opportunities for partners monitoring how unmanned systems perform in Europe’s most intense conventional conflict since 1945.
The successful tests of Protector with the Tavria-12.7 module signal that Ukraine is moving from prototypes and ad-hoc battlefield improvisations toward mature, codified robotic combat systems that can be integrated into doctrine and force structure. If the platform proves reliable under frontline conditions, it could help reduce casualty rates among vehicle crews, provide flexible fire support in areas saturated by drones and artillery, and accelerate the transition to mixed manned-unmanned formations that many armed forces are only beginning to conceptualise on paper.
Written by Teoman S. Nicanci – Defense Analyst, Army Recognition Group
Teoman S. Nicanci holds degrees in Political Science, Comparative and International Politics, and International Relations and Diplomacy from leading Belgian universities, with research focused on Russian strategic behavior, defense technology, and modern warfare. He is a defense analyst at Army Recognition, specializing in the global defense industry, military armament, and emerging defense technologies.