Seconds later a Ukrainian drone roared into a mauve sky. But this time Big Brother loses," Ray said, as the drone vanished over the horizon, engine thrumming. Its destination was Crimea, a scenic Ukrainian peninsula of beaches and white chalk mountains, stolen by Russia in 2014, and militarised thereafter. Far away from the frontline, other crews were crisscrossing Ukraine, releasing drones according to a precise evening schedule. Not all Ukrainian drones reach their targets.