Why it is so hard to shoot down cheap drones | DW News

Key Concepts:

• Drone proliferation and its impact on modern warfare
• Traditional air defense systems limitations (e.g., Patriot missile systems) against drone swarms
• Laser weapon systems as a counter-drone solution: advantages, disadvantages, and current development
• Cost-effectiveness of lasers vs. conventional interceptors
• Operational limitations of laser systems (weather, range, mobility)
• Defensive vs. offensive applications of laser weapons
• Technological challenges in developing robust and battlefield-ready laser systems

1. Drone Warfare and the Air Defense Challenge

• The proliferation of drones has significantly changed modern warfare, creating challenges for military forces globally.
• Examples: Ukraine under drone bombardment, Israel under missile and drone attack from Iran, Russian drones violating Polish airspace.
• Drones are cheap, plentiful, and increasingly difficult to combat with traditional air defense systems.
• Traditional systems like the Patriot missile system are designed for larger threats (e.g., cruise missiles), expensive, and difficult to replace.
• Ukraine has used F-16 fighters and even old propeller planes to intercept drones, which often fly in swarms, including decoys.
• Justin Bronk (Royal United Service Institute): Drones introduce significant mass, potentially hundreds at a time, overwhelming traditional defense systems.
• Intercepting with traditional surface-to-air missiles is not economical.
• Sifting and sorting real threats from decoys within a swarm is challenging for command and control.

2. Laser Weapons as a Counter-Drone Solution

• Militaries have been experimenting with laser systems for years to counter airborne threats.
• Israel claims successful testing of a high-powered laser ("Iron Beam") that can target and destroy drones with high-energy bursts, planned for deployment later this year.
• Laser systems offer cost advantages: $1-$5 per interception vs. $50,000+ for rocket interceptors.
• Much cheaper than a Patriot battery (can cost a billion dollars and takes years to produce).
• Limitations: Poor performance in rain/stormy weather, limited range compared to conventional systems.
• Other countries developing laser weapons: Australian company (sold to unnamed NATO member), EU defense agency, Ukraine, China (LY1 system used by its Navy).
• Currently, laser systems are primarily for defensive use.

3. Advantages and Disadvantages of Laser Systems

• Justin Bronk: Laser systems are best for defending fixed locations (air bases) and frontier areas (borders).
• Effective when power generation, cooling, and capacitor banks can be set up.
• Warships also provide a suitable mobile platform due to large power and cooling capacity.
• Tactical mobile applications are more complicated due to power limitations and the need for recharging or generators.
• Laser systems based on lenses are vulnerable to damage from artillery blasts and shell fragments, making them less resilient than radar-guided anti-aircraft guns.

4. Offensive vs. Defensive Applications

• Justin Bronk: Laser weapons are line-of-sight weapons with range limitations.
• Offensive tasks require greater range than lasers can currently offer.
• Previous programs like the Airborne Laser (anti-ballistic missile defense) used large, expensive chemical lasers on adapted 747s for the required power output.
• Lasers are better suited for defensive use in the foreseeable future.

5. Cost and Complexity of Defending Against Drones

• Sasha Brookman (International Institute for Strategic Studies): Intercepting drones with missiles is expensive due to the need for advanced guidance systems, proximity fuses, and radar integration.
• The interceptor missile must hit a fast-moving object mid-flight.
• The attacker (drone) has the advantage.
• Components like rocket fuel, guidance systems, and networking are high-tech and costly.
• The $50,000 estimate for interceptor missiles is likely a lower estimate.

6. Technological Challenges and Maturation of Laser Systems

• Sasha Brookman: Laser weapon systems have been in development since the Star Wars initiative in the 1980s, with many delays and setbacks.
• American airborne laser project was stopped in 2002 despite billions invested.
• Technological breakthroughs are needed to realize the potential of solid-state fiber optic lasers.
• Israeli Iron Beam tested against Hezbollah drones.
• Other countries developing systems: US (50kW laser on Stryker vehicle), Germany, UK, Italy, Japan, Turkey, UAE.
• The cost equation includes billions upfront and tens of millions to build a system.

7. Operational Considerations and Maintenance

• Laser systems are highly sophisticated, involving physics, quantum physics, photons, and electronics.
• Trained technicians are required to maintain these systems.
• A challenge is creating rugged versions of laser systems that can be deployed on trucks or armored vehicles in the battlefield.
• Lasers must be precisely adjusted (nanometers or micrometers), requiring robust and resilient designs.

8. Conclusion

• Drone proliferation poses a significant challenge to air defense, necessitating the development of cost-effective countermeasures.
• Laser weapons offer a promising solution, with advantages in cost per interception compared to traditional missile systems.
• However, laser systems have limitations related to weather, range, mobility, and vulnerability to damage.
• Continued technological development is needed to create robust and battlefield-ready laser systems for widespread deployment.
• While primarily defensive currently, future advancements might enable offensive applications, but range limitations remain a key factor.