British troops downed a drone swarm of up to 100 systems using a new radio frequency (RF) directed energy weapon (DEW) demonstrator for the first time.
This novel system targeted, tracked, and defeated the uncrewed aerial systems at Manorbier Air Defence Range, near Tenby, West Wales. The trial is the largest Counter-Uncrewed Aerial System (C-UAS) exercise the Army have conducted to date, according to the UK government.
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RF DEW systems can defeat airborne targets at a range of one kilometre and are effective against threats that cannot be jammed using electronic warfare.
“Anything that transmits over the electromagnetic spectrum [such as drone signals] is at risk to electronic warfare,” Will Ashford-Brown, director of strategic insights at the Heligan Group, a defence analysis and investment company, told Army Technology. “So there will be a sustained development of these denial capabilities.”
Proliferation of drones
At an estimated cost of 10 pence, or 13 cents, per shot fired, the RF DEW could provide a cost-effective complement to traditional missile-based air defence systems.
This would save millions of dollars spent on firing missiles to destroy cheaply procured drones. Notoriously, the Royal Navy use Aster 15 and 30 missiles, worth at least £1m per missile, as part of Operation Prosperity Guardian in the Red Sea.
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By GlobalDataDrone swarms litter the battlespace in Ukraine. British defence intelligence estimates that in 2024 Ukraine had to defend against attacks from more than 18,000 drones. This has increased rapidly, as drones are now said to account for up to 80% of casualties in the Ukraine-Russia war; that is in excess of 1,000 casualties per day across Ukraine.
“Ukrainian and Russian forces think up innovative ways to get around these denial effects,” Ashford-Brown observed, “and particularly the Russians we’ve seen using fibre optic cabling in their drone technology to remove their need to communicate over the electromagnetic spectrum.
“I think further ahead, we’re seeing technologies emerge to counter this, which involve systems that can automatically hop frequencies.”
MoD tactical capabilities
As part of new spending plans announced in the Spring Budget last month, the UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) will allocate 10% of its overall budget on novel and innovative technologies.
Britain is projected to spend £76.4bn on defence in 2025, according to GlobalData intelligence. Around £7.64bn will be spent on innovative solutions like RF DEW.
However, it is unclear what the definition for innovative technologies allows for specifically.
Hypersonic weapons are an ‘innovative’ solution that penetrate modern defences, but this is a strategic enabler in its own right as the UK and US race to deliver a truly hypersonic capability beyond that of the Russian Kinzhal or Zircon missiles.
So, It may be that these ‘innovative’ solutions, which are instead spurred on by small and medium enterprises, will only represent the tactical level solutions.
The RF DEW is the latest solution in the Army’s novel range of C-UAS capabilities for mobile units. Other systems include a 15 kilowatt ground-based laser weapon system mounted on a Wolfhound tactical support vehicle under Project Swinton.
Both of these tactical countermeasures were developed by Team Hersa – a collaborative team including DE&S and Dstl, the UK’s defence procurement and innovation agencies. Both will enable British Army units to move at the tactical level by eliminating the insurmountable drone threat which has hitherto gone unchallenged.
Additional reporting from Richard Thomas.
