Since low-altitude drones fly only hundreds of feet above ground, they mostly operate outside traditional radar coverage used to track commercial aircraft. Too Small and Simple to be a Threat?ĭrones are rapidly becoming ‘tools of the trade’ in many industries and could be categorized into segments of the market: Government (including Military), Enterprise (Corporations/Businesses) and Consumers (Personal/Hobbyist). Superior knowledge, skills, and tools in the cyber domain will probably be the most decisive factor for a successful defence. Last but not least, exploiting cyber capabilities is an important vector to counter the mini drone threat, though respective solutions are still immature. Multiple domain (electromagnetic, acoustic, electro-optic), multiple sensor (active radar, passive electromagnetic interceptors, acoustic sensors, infrared cameras), multiple jamming/deception system of systems, integrated via a dedicated command & control (C2) capability, are key elements within this approach. New developments such as advanced passive and active multispectral technologies seem most feasible to deal with the counter-UAS challenge. Unconventional threats require more advanced solutions, and many industrial and government initiatives are rising to meet this new threat. So far, traditional countermeasures have demonstrated their weakness in this regard. government buildings, high-profile event locations, prisons, military compounds) has therefore become a critical capability. The detection, identification, and neutralization of such UAS flying near key infrastructure or sensitive areas (e.g. As many recent examples show, small UAS have become a real threat to both civil and military targets.
While such advanced technology means a huge opportunity for the military and industry, its alternative, sinister use for criminal and terrorist purposes is also no longer a fictitious risk.
Progress in power storage, avionics miniaturization, materials and design methodologies, together with the availability of commercial or open source software applications, will enable increasingly smaller and cheaper platforms for a broadening range of possible uses. Small (15–150 kg), mini (<15 kg), micro (<66 J energy state) Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) 1 will drastically proliferate in the near future with rapidly advancing performance and functionalities.