The proliferation of cheap, deadly uncrewed aerial vehicles (UAVs) into conflicts around the world has presented a new challenge for military leaders.
While modern air defences are designed to effectively target limited numbers of large, highly-capable fighter and bomber aircraft using costly precision missiles, such systems are proving unsuitable for protecting friendly airspace against large quantities of small suicide drones – formally known as one-way UAVs. These small vehicles fly low and slow, and cost just a fraction of what a high-end anti-aircraft missile does.
Read more…
Source: FlightGlobal
Sign up for Counter-IED Report Newsletter
Related:
- U.S. Senator Katie Britt, Director Kash Patel Reaffirm Commitment to FBI Redstone Arsenal
May 9, 2025
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Katie Britt (R-Ala.), a member of the Commerce, Justice, and Science Subcommittee on Appropriations, participated in a hearing for the Trump Administration’s Fiscal Year 2026 (FY26) Budget Request for the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) with FBI Director Kash Patel. Senator Britt began her line of questioning by thanking Director Patel ...
- How southern Ukraine demined
May 3, 2025
In Mykolaiv region, demining operators are using an industrial drone system equipped with a modern magnetometer to detect explosive ordnance. This was reported by the Ministry of Defense, according to Ukrinform. The ministry reminds that southern Ukraine is one of the most heavily mined regions in the country. To effectively locate and identify mines and other ...
- Ukraine’s Armed Forces Receive New Domestic Anti-Tank Landmines
May 1, 2025
The Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) posted a video on Tuesday of a new domestically produced anti-tank landmine which they have designated as the TM-2025. It appears to be a modernized and updated version of the TM-62, which was available in several variants using metal, plastic, wooden and even cardboard bodies. It was the principal anti-tank ...
- Adapting to Multi-Domain Battlefield: Developing Emissions Control SOP
April 22, 2025
The current fighting in Ukraine has demonstrated how electronic warfare systems can be employed to enable the protection and targeting of ground forces, foreshadowing how U.S. forces must be prepared to operate amidst a contested electromagnetic spectrum (EMS). Managing emissions control (EMCON) can greatly reduce the vulnerability of U.S. forces to enemy detection, targeting, and ...
- Israel: How IDF engineering tech is saving soldiers lives before getting to the battlefield
April 22, 2025
As the IDF continues its operations, the IDF’s combat engineers are quietly revolutionizing the battlefield with technology designed to save lives before combat even begins, the IDF announced in a statement on Sunday. During the operations, the troops face a gauntlet of underground tunnels, explosive devices, and hidden ambushes. To counter these threats, the IDF has ...
- China tests non-nuclear hydrogen bomb, science paper shows
April 20, 2025
The weapon generates a white-hot fireball that lasts 15 times longer than TNT’s fleeting flash Chinese researchers have successfully detonated a hydrogen-based explosive device in a controlled field test, triggering devastating chemical chain reactions without using any nuclear materials, according to a study published last month. The 2kg (4.4lbs) bomb generated a fireball exceeding 1,000 degrees ...
- U.S. Marine Corps to Deploy Counter-Drone Systems Across Units in 2025
April 9, 2025
MARINE CORPS BASE QUANTICO, Va. — The proliferation of small Unmanned Aircraft Systems presents a significant tactical challenge for modern military forces. As adversaries across the globe increasingly mature and employ low-cost sUAS for reconnaissance, surveillance, and attack missions, it is imperative for the Marine Corps to enhance its capability to counter these threats in ...
- Assessment of handheld Raman spectroscopy for forensic analysis of dark-colored bulk explosive fuel–oxidizer mixtures
April 3, 2025
The field identification of explosives is critical for crime response, requiring specialized protocols and often the support of Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) teams to ensure safety. Handheld Raman spectrometers are widely used for this purpose due to their portability, nondestructive analysis, and ability to detect both organic and inorganic compounds with minimal sample preparation. However, their ...
- U.S. Marine Corps Launches Attack Drone Team
March 31, 2025
MARINE CORPS BASE QUANTICO, Va. – On Jan. 3, 2025, the Commanding Generals of Training Command, Maj. Gen. Anthony M. Henderson, and the Marine Corps Warfighting Laboratory, Brig. Gen. Simon M. Doran, established the Marine Corps Attack Drone Team in response to the rapid proliferation of armed first-person view drone technology and tactics. The creation of ...
- Ukraine: SES, National Police sappers clear over 2,400 km² of land
March 27, 2025
Since the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion, sappers from the State Emergency Service of Ukraine (SES) and the National Police have cleared over 2,400 km² of Ukrainian territory. According to the deputy minister, Ukraine has become a global hub for humanitarian demining over the course of more than three years of full-scale war. “Ukrainian sappers have ...
- Characterization and differentiation of aluminum powders used in improvised explosive devices
March 16, 2025
Determining the extent to which sources of aluminum (Al) powders, often used as fuel in improvised explosive devices (IEDs), can be differentiated is important for forensic investigations and gathering intelligence. Previous work developed effective methods of characterizing Al powders using micromorphometric features of the Al particles and a multistage sampling approach. Since then, ~100 additional samples ...
- Ukraine needs almost US$30 billion for mine clearance
February 27, 2025
Ukraine requires US$29.8 billion to clear the war-affected areas of landmines and other explosive ordnance. Ukraine’s Ministry of Economy, citing an assessment by the Fourth Rapid Damage and Needs Assessment (RDNA4) conducted by the World Bank, the government of Ukraine, the European Union and the United Nations. The Ministry of Economy has lowered the estimated cost ...
- Ukraine to establish AI-assisted demining test site
February 25, 2025
Ukraine has begun developing a testing site for the use of artificial intelligence and other advanced technologies in mine action. The Defence Ministry and its partners have identified a location for a testing ground dedicated to demining technologies. Representatives of the Main Directorate of Mine Action, Civil Protection, and Environmental Safety, the United Nations Development Programme, ...
- Stand-off hazardous materials identification based on near-infrared hyperspectral imaging combined with convolutional neural network
February 15, 2025
Near-infrared (NIR) hyperspectral imaging enables rapid, non-contact imaging of hazardous materials in a non-destructive manner, allowing for analysis based on spectral reflection information. However, using traditional methods, it is challenging to identify hazardous materials with less distinct spectral reflection features. This study utilizes a self-built NIR hyperspectral imaging system and proposes a new approach. Using a ...
- Cadets aim to make explosive ordnance operations safer
January 28, 2025
U.S. AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo. – A cadet brother team developed an electronic wire stabilization and cutting tool that could revolutionize explosive ordnance operations. Military members are put at risk during explosive ordnance operations as they disarm improvised explosive devices. Cadets 1st Class Gunnar and Simon Gott’s project introduces additional tools for EOD technicians. It offers ...
- ADF Specialised facility counters IED threats
December 20, 2024
Gallipoli Barracks was recently the scene for an inspection of one of the ADFs new level two counter-IED weapons technical intelligence (L2 WTI) laboratories being delivered by Project Land 154-2 in association with the Defence Science and Technology Group. Each L2 WTI facility is a self-contained containerised and deployable processing facility that allows ADF personnel to ...
- Norway Provides Ukrainian Navy With $240M for Minehunting and Autonomy
December 16, 2024
On Monday, the Norwegian government announced a new grant of about $240 million to support Ukraine’s navy in its fight against Russian forces in the Black Sea. The grant includes financing for the joint Norwegian/British Maritime Capability Coalition, a capacity-building partnership for Ukraine’s naval forces. The Maritime Capability Coalition’s centerpiece was the transfer of two Royal ...
- Europol: Terrorists exploiting global tensions
December 12, 2024
Terrorists continue to adapt their methods and narratives to exploit global events, digital technology, and societal vulnerabilities. The EU Terrorism Situation and Trend Report (EU TE-SAT) 2024, published today by Europol, provides a detailed overview of the evolving terrorism landscape in the European Union in 2023. In today’s changing world, terrorist actors are continuously adapting their ...
- Leveraging new technology for a mine-free future
December 9, 2024
The devastating legacy of armed conflict – often marked by the indiscriminate use of landmines, improvised explosive devices and other explosive ordnance – poses a significant humanitarian challenge. Innovation in mine action With over 25 years of experience, UNOPS has the largest operational mine action capability in the UN system. This vast expertise has given us ...
- An autonomous microbial sensor enables long-term detection of TNT explosive in natural soil
December 2, 2024
Engineered microbes can sense target chemicals and respond with programmed actions, using cell sensors to detect specific chemicals and genetic circuits to convert regulatory signals into observable outcomes1,2,3. Microbial sensors have the potential to carry out autonomous, long-term environmental monitoring inside complex environments, such as soil systems or the human gut, without the need for ...
- CBRN Dismounted Reconnaissance System Reaches FOC
November 20, 2024
The Joint Project Manager for CBRN Sensors team completed fielding of the Explosive Ordnance Disposal variant of our CBRN Dismounted Reconnaissance System (CBRN DRS) to the U.S. Army in October 2024. The CBRN DRS provides detection, decontamination, and protective equipment for CBRN reconnaissance missions in difficult-to-access areas. The CBRN DRS is designed to support operational and ...
- U.S. Marines Bring New Capabilities to International Naval Exercise
November 14, 2024
The U.S. Marine Corps participated in their first Phoenix Express exercise Nov. 5-15 bringing new capabilities to critical maritime security operations training. The Marines, from Explosive Ordnance Disposal Company, 8th Engineer Support Battalion, 2nd Marine Logistics Group (8th ESB EOD) and Headquarters and Service Battalion, 2nd Marine Logistics Group (H&S Battalion, 2nd MLG), introduced a range ...