The US Department of Defense is testing a swarm of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) designed for electronic and fire suppression of enemy assets air defense(air defense) and attacks on positional areas of offensive weapons probable enemy. The head of what was once one of the most secret divisions of the Pentagon - the Strategic Capabilities Office (SCO) - William Roper said this during a report to US Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter, writes the military analytical publication The National Interest.
According to Roper, the implementation of this program will give the US armed forces unprecedented advantages in modern warfare. Mini-drones are designed and built on standard elements already developed by American industry, the Pentagon official emphasized.
The promising unmanned aerial vehicle has already received the name Perdix (Latin for “partridge”), which sounds dissonant to the Russian ear.
“They are single-use, fly at extremely low altitudes and can also be used as a reconnaissance weapon. You can have many of these mini-drones, and only as many as you need to complete the combat mission in a given case. A large number of The UAV creates considerable advantages over the enemy. He will be forced to invest much more in his defense more funds and time to reliably protect yourself from such swarms,” Roper explained.
Jahi Chikwendiu/The Washington Post Project Perdix drone, named after the ancient Greek heroine Perdika
However, in his public statements, he never named any specific technologies used in the creation and operation of new drones.
The only thing William Roper clarified: small drones can be easily launched from a carrier aircraft.
Such machines can be located in some kind of cassette on board a fighter or bomber and sent by the pilot to carry out a combat mission with the press of a button. In numerous tests, F-16 and F/A-18 aircraft are used as swarm carriers.
“Although mini-drones do have advantages in terms of combat use, according to the “effectiveness - cost” criterion, in comparison with many other types of weapons and military equipment“Small drones still have a very limited range,” says William Roper.
According to him, the external contours of the Perdix drone are created using 3D printing to ensure fast production and lower device prices.
According to the authors of this idea, small-sized drones should fly up to their targets with the minimum possible intervals and distances between each other. One of the main problems with this is the collision of drones with each other. For safe autonomous flight, special computer algorithms are used. In this regard, the developers, in their own words, have made significant progress.
There are also serious limitations in the use of mini-drones, the authors of the program believe.
The US military is not yet able to design such vehicles that could return to the carrier aircraft from which they were launched.
American developers are now studying preliminary test results. If necessary, the necessary changes and additions will be made to the program.
The unmanned aerial vehicle mentioned by Pentagon officials is just one of many systems being developed for “swarm use,” a Russian expert in the field of unmanned systems explained to Gazeta.Ru. Chief Editor magazine "Unmanned Aviation" Denis Fedutinov. “In the USA, several interested structures have organized work in this area. Examples include the LOCUST program of the Office of Naval Research (ONR), as well as the DARPA Gremlins project,” says Fedutinov.
It is assumed that the drones will operate against an enemy equipped modern systems Air defense. It will be overcome through the simultaneous use of many drones.
For this unmanned vehicles must be able to interact with each other, forming an information network. This property should ensure the redistribution of combat missions in a changing situation, including in the event of some of the drones being disabled. Such UAVs, designed to withstand high losses, must be relatively cheap and consist of the most available components.
“I think promising unmanned swarms can be formed from UAVs different types, says Fedutinov. “Potentially, multicopters that are currently widespread could also be used here.”
According to the expert, there have also been some projects in Russia aimed at developing swarm technologies in relation to UAVs. However, this topic has not yet been seriously addressed in our country. To actually implement such ideas, serious government investment is needed, the expert explains. First of all, in the development of the necessary swarm algorithms. The cost of this work may exceed the cost of creating the hardware, Fedutinov emphasizes.
The US Office of Strategic Capabilities, which operates closely with the defense industry, was created to speed up the long, expensive and bureaucratic process of adopting a particular type of weapon. Management must integrate science and military industry. “Often people who have never met before are natural partners in creating promising weapons. We must use this situation for constructive purposes,” William Roper, head of the US Strategic Capabilities Office, explained his tasks to reporters.
“We want to give commanders undeniable advantages during combat operations over the enemy. We take risky concepts and bring the result of the work to a state where it can be used in combat,” the Pentagon official emphasizes.
Such American developments should be regarded as a serious threat, says Konstantin Makienko, deputy director of the Center for Strategies and Technologies. “And this, without any exaggeration, revolution in military affairs can happen quite quickly and suddenly,” says Makienko. “It will be very physically difficult to fight such swarms of small drones. No mirror counteraction is suitable here. In my opinion, only the use of radio-electronic weapons that destroy intellectual connections in such a swarm will be effective.”
MOSCOW, March 21 - RIA Novosti, Andrey Kots. The Russian Ministry of Defense on Tuesday announced the start of large-scale exercises of air defense forces in the south of the country. They involve more than two thousand military personnel and the entire range of air defense systems - from portable anti-aircraft missile systems(MANPADS) "Igla" to heavy long-range systems S-300V4.
“A feature of the field training of the air defense district troops this spring is the execution of firing at small-sized air targets simulating unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) of a mock enemy,” the press service of the Russian Ministry of Defense reports details of the maneuvers.
Many countries have long used drones in wars and conflicts around the world, along with aviation. But never before have UAVs collided en masse with a modern air defense system. How ready are the Russian Armed Forces today to counter these weapons and which drones of a potential enemy pose the greatest danger?
Easy target
Perhaps today the most “promoted” funds mass media and Hollywood films are the American strategic reconnaissance UAV RQ-4 Global Hawk and attack MQ-9 Reaper. These drones are capable of staying in the air for more than a day and operating at a distance of thousands of kilometers from the operator. The MQ-9 and their predecessors, the MQ-1 Predator, are actively used by the United States in Afghanistan and Iraq, where they inflict guided missiles strikes on terrorist positions. The country is armed with hundreds of such systems and thousands of simpler reconnaissance UAVs.
The US military leadership has never hidden the fact that in future military conflicts the main focus will be on unmanned weapons. The advantages of such weapons are obvious: firstly, UAVs are simpler and cheaper to produce than modern fighter or a bomber. Secondly, the operator is located thousands of kilometers from the battlefield and controls the device with the movement of a joystick. Thirdly, training such a “gamer” will cost much less than training an airplane pilot. But UAVs also have serious disadvantages.
“To use these drones against us in the event of a hypothetical conflict is to waste expensive devices,” military expert Mikhail Khodarenok told RIA Novosti. Anti-aircraft missile systems The S-300 and S-400 are designed to destroy all classes of aerodynamic targets, and the UAV does not pose much of a threat to them. The same Global Hawk and Reaper have a large reflective surface, which allows radars to detect them at considerable distances. Their low speed, coupled with the lack of electronic warfare (EW) capabilities for self-defense, makes them an easy target for an anti-aircraft missile. And smaller targets can be dealt with by short-range air defense systems - "Thor", "Pantsir" and MANPADS."
Dangerous midge
According to Mikhail Khodarenok, a much greater threat to our air defense systems is still posed by manned aircraft, which fly faster, are better armed, and are capable of operating in active conditions. electronic jamming. However, drones are constantly being improved, and in the future they can pose a serious threat to any air defense.
Military expert: American swarm drones - "money down the drain"In the USA they are testing new type weapons - a swarm of mini-drones to suppress air defense systems. Military observer Vladislav Shurygin expressed the opinion on Sputnik radio that this is another unreasonably expensive project.“The Americans have been working on the concept of a “swarm of drones” for a long time and quite successfully,” said Leonid Ivashov, president of the Academy of Geopolitical Problems. “It involves the massive use of small-sized drones of various configurations and purposes. They will conduct reconnaissance and strike in narrow sectors of the front. Over time, the military "The US leadership plans to make this development its main striking force. Even a modern air defense system will find it extremely difficult to combat it."
The latest tests of a “swarm of drones” were reported in October last year by the American publication The National Interest. The author of the article publishes excerpts from the report of the head of the Pentagon's Office of Strategic Capabilities, William Roper, to Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter. Roper, in particular, said that defense industry managed to create a small-sized reconnaissance drone Perdix the size of a crow, the glider of which was actually printed on a 3D printer. This means it is cheap - and this is vital for mass production.
“They are single-use and can also be used as a reconnaissance weapon. You can have many of these mini-drones, and exactly as many as you need to complete the combat mission in this particular case,” Roper explained. “A large number of UAVs creates considerable advantages over the enemy.He will be forced to invest much more money and time in his defense in order to reliably protect himself from such swarms.
It is planned to launch such a “midge” from F-16 and F-18 fighters. William Roper emphasized that Perdix is just one of many UAV variants being developed as part of the “drone swarm” concept. In the future, there will be models capable of carrying weapons.
ISIS militants have been using something similar recently in Iraq. They began hanging homemade bombs in a plastic case under ordinary quadcopters, which can be bought on the Internet. The UAV hovers over the target and, at the operator’s command, drops the load directly on its head. The tank, of course, cannot be destroyed, but there are many videos on the Internet where an improvised bomber easily disabled Hummer armored vehicles. Now imagine that there are many similar devices above the target, their combat load is greater, their accuracy is higher, and it is difficult to detect them from the ground due to their small size. Simply put, this is the prototype of the “drone swarm” concept.
"This is very dangerous weapon for a number of reasons,” said Mikhail Khodarenok. — Firstly, mini-drones have a small reflective surface. Secondly, they will be able to fly with high overloads at extremely low altitudes. Thirdly, there can be a lot of them. Hitting a swarm with missiles is like firing a cannon at a flock of sparrows."
Interception of control
In mid-March, the head of the US Army Training Command, David Perkins, gave an example of an unsuccessful fight against drones at a local symposium. He told listeners that one of the Pentagon's military allies used a two hundred dollar drone to destroy anti-aircraft missile Patriot worth $3.4 million. He emphasized that a more cost-effective means is needed to combat small threats.
“The most effective weapon against drones - both large and small - can only be modern electronic warfare systems,” said Mikhail Khodarenok. “The main thing is not to shoot down the UAV, but to destroy the communication channel with the operator or at least significantly complicate the navigation of the device.”
Such systems are in service Russian troops electronic warfare. These include, for example, the Krasukha family of electronic warfare systems. They are capable of jamming spy satellites, ground-based and air-based radars (AWACS), as well as disrupting or intercepting control of enemy UAVs.
The technical characteristics of these systems are classified, but it is claimed that Krasukha-4 can operate effectively at ranges of up to 300 kilometers. This significantly exceeds the range of Hellfire missiles, the main weapon of American strike UAVs. And a swarm of mini-drones that falls within the Krasukha’s range of action will most likely fail in its entirety. If the powerful Reaper and Global Hawk drones are not equipped with electronic defense systems, then what about their smaller “brothers”?
American UAVs have already encountered modern electronic warfare systems. On December 4, 2011, the Iranian military managed to “steal” the most modern stealth drone of the US Armed Forces, the RQ-170 Sentinel, from the route and land it at one of its air bases. On December 9, he was shown on national television without any visible damage. How exactly it was possible to intercept control is not reported, but experts believe that this is the work of a modern electronic warfare system supplied to Iran by either Russia or China.
And on March 12, 2017, the head of the Rostec state corporation, Sergei Chemezov, announced that Russia had created systems capable of physically destroying the on-board equipment of drones.
“The Radioelectronic Technologies Concern has created an electronic warfare system, with the help of which the control of drones becomes unusable,” Chemezov explained. — Onboard radio-electronic equipment burns out, and the drone essentially becomes a piece of iron. Without control, it might just fall."
Technical details new system are currently strictly classified.
*Terrorist organization banned in Russia.
The US Department of Defense has released a video clearly demonstrating the testing of a swarm of 3D-printed reconnaissance drones. The project is known as “Perdix”.
The development of swarming 3D printed drones has been underway for several years, but until now only the systems in action have been available. The new video clearly demonstrates the use of a new system capable of penetrating enemy air defenses. The emphasis is not on quality, but on quantity. During testing at the China Lake training ground, two fighter-bombers naval aviation F/A-18 Super Hornet dropped 103 Perdix drone, united in a flock and completed a number of tasks, while demonstrating the ability to coordinate actions and adapt to a changing environment. Nothing is known for certain about the purpose of the system, but it can be assumed that, if necessary, such devices will be used not only for aerial reconnaissance, but also delivering strikes in conditions of concentrated air defense.
"In view of complex nature fighting Perdix is not a synchronized swarm of drones with individual programming, but a collective organism with a common, distributed intelligence that allows it to assess the current situation and make coordinated decisions, as swarms do in nature. Each drone communicates and coordinates with other drones in the group. Thus, there is no specific leader, which allows the swarm to adapt to losses or growth in numbers,” explains William Roper, director of the Strategic Capabilities Office (SCO).
The development of the Perdix system has been ongoing since 2013. Original idea owned by students at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), but the project was adapted to the needs of the US Department of Defense. Since then, the drone's design has changed six times, and the current version has proven capable of being deployed from aircraft flying at Mach 0.6 and operating in temperatures as low as -10°C using only cheap, publicly available components. The supporting structure of drones is made using 3D printing, and in long term The US Department of Defense intends to ramp up drone production and produce thousands of Perdix drones. And do you have interesting news? Share your developments with us and we will tell the whole world about them!
The US Department of Defense is testing a swarm of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) designed for electronic and fire suppression of enemy air defense (air defense) systems and attacks on positional areas of the offensive weapons of a potential enemy. The head of what was once one of the most secret divisions of the Pentagon - the Strategic Capabilities Office (SCO) - William Roper spoke about this during a report to US Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter, writes a military analytical publication.
According to Roper, the implementation of this program will give the US armed forces unprecedented advantages in modern warfare. Mini-drones are designed and built on standard elements already developed by American industry, the Pentagon official emphasized.
The promising unmanned aerial vehicle has already been named Perdix (Latin for “partridge”).
“They are single-use, fly at extremely low altitudes and can also be used as a reconnaissance weapon. You can have many of these mini-drones, and only as many as you need to complete the combat mission in a given case. A large number of UAVs creates considerable advantages over the enemy. He will be forced to invest much more money and time into his defense in order to reliably protect himself from such swarms,” Roper explained.
However, in his public statements, he never named any specific technologies used in the creation and operation of new drones.
The only thing that William Roper clarified is that small-sized drones can be easily launched from a carrier aircraft.
Such machines can be located in some kind of cassette on board a fighter or bomber and sent by the pilot to carry out a combat mission with the press of a button. In numerous tests, F-16 and F/A-18 aircraft are used as swarm carriers.
“Although mini-drones do have advantages in terms of combat use, according to the cost-effectiveness criterion, in comparison with many other types of weapons and military equipment, small drones still have a very limited range,” says William Roper.
According to him, the external contours of the Perdix drone are created using 3D printing to ensure rapid production and lower prices for the devices.
It is assumed that the drones will operate against an enemy equipped with modern air defense systems. It will be overcome through the simultaneous use of many drones.
According to the authors of this idea, small-sized drones should fly up to their targets with the minimum possible intervals and distances between each other. One of the main problems with this is the collision of drones with each other. To do this, unmanned vehicles must be able to interact with each other, forming an information network. This property should ensure the redistribution of combat missions in a changing situation, including in the event of some of the drones being disabled.
For safe autonomous flight, special computer algorithms are used. In this regard, the developers, in their own words, have made significant progress. American developers are now studying preliminary test results. If necessary, the necessary changes and additions will be made to the program.
The unmanned aerial vehicle mentioned by Pentagon officials is just one of many systems being developed to create a so-called “drone swarm.”
In the USA, several interested structures have organized work in this area. Examples include the Office of Naval Research's (ONR) LOCUST program and DARPA's Gremlins project.
The Gremlins project, named after the fictional creatures - gremlins, involves the creation of small unmanned aircraft, capable of uniting in flocks and jointly performing various tasks. It is assumed that the “Gremlins” will be launched from B-52 Stratofortress and B-1B Lancer bombers and C-130 Hercules/Super Hercules transport aircraft from an altitude of 12.2 thousand meters.
The devices will be able to reach speeds of up to Mach 0.7–0.8 (864–987 kilometers per hour). The flight duration of the drones will be at least one to three hours, and the range will be 555–926 kilometers.
For now we are talking about their reconnaissance and electronic suppression of targets. They will fly up to enemy targets as close as possible and at the same time mass application“clog” air defense channels. Question about combat use"Gremlins" on at this stage is not being raised (perhaps they prefer not to talk about it openly for now). Having completed its mission, the “gremlin” must return to the carrier, where it will be returned on board the “mother” aircraft using special equipment.
The American company General Atomics has begun developing a special mechanical manipulator with which transport aircraft will be able to catch unmanned aerial vehicles of the Gremlins project in the air. Like Breaking Defense, such a manipulator will receive drones and transport them to the cargo bay of an aircraft.
Last month, General Atomics Aeronautical Systems already proposed its own version of such a UAV, giving it the name SUAS (small unmanned aircraft system). It reportedly weighs about 350 kg, can carry a payload of up to 13 kg and has an hour's worth of fuel. Its flight life is designed for 20 cycles. Having worked them out, the “Gremlin” will be scrapped.
Externally, the device looks like cruise missile type JASSM, but with a narrower wing and an inverted tail. Other details about the device are not specified. Its trials are planned to begin in 2019.
As for the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory's LOCUST drone program, it is planned to create a “swarm” that will include up to 30 UAVs, but over time their number may increase significantly. In March, the LOCUST launch process was tested, and in April, the autonomy of the systems was tested. The developers created a “swarm” of 9 devices.
The abbreviation in the name stands for Low-Cost Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Swarming Technology, but the word “locust” also means “locust.” Visual "swarms" of drones offered Navy, look like hordes of these insects, terrifying on people.
Locust drones, combining reconnaissance and combat functions, embodied the basic principles on which other "" drones are built and, however, were adapted to the needs of the American fleet.
To form “swarms”, miniature locust drones are “shot” into the air every second from specially adapted launchers. Over time, well-organized “hordes” will be able to attack enemy ships or, conversely, be used in defensive operations. UAVs can be launched from ships, airplanes, and ground military equipment.
To date, the tests of the LOCUST program use a special modification of Coyote drones developed by Sensintel (a division of Raytheon), costing about $15,000 apiece, but in the future it is planned to use other, even more economical models with larger warheads.
The main difference from the basic version of Coyote is new software for the coordinated operation of the UAV in a group (it was developed in collaboration with the Georgia Institute of Technological Research). The drone is about a meter long and has folding wings that open when launched (a similar mechanism is used by Blackwing and Sea Robin). The current modification can fly at speeds of up to 137 km/h and move away from the operator at a distance of up to 20 km, for an hour and a half. It is possible that “locusts” will be more effective than, for example, anti-ship missile Harpoon, worth $1.2 million.
Military experts conducted several hundred simulated tests to study how the Aegis air defense/missile defense system, complemented by six heavy machine guns, and two anti-aircraft artillery complex Phalanx will respond to a sudden attack by 5 to 10 drones attacking a military vessel from different directions. Due to the miniature size of the UAV, radars, even in conditions of good visibility, detected their approach only at an extremely short distance: less than two kilometers. With drone speeds of about 250 km/h, maximum time the strike time after the target was detected by radar was 15 seconds. The Aegis electronic jamming systems could not in any way affect the UAV's control system. Due to its short range, Aegis could not attack detected targets with interceptor missiles or a 127 mm cannon. The drones could only be destroyed by close range using machine guns and Phalanx complexes.
It was estimated that on average 2.8 out of 8 drones completely overtook the most advanced defenses. After reorienting the systems to maximally counter the “swarm” of drones - by updating sensors and increasing the number of Phalanx systems and machine guns - the above figure decreased to 1 out of 8. If the number of attacking UAVs increases to several dozen, the most modern American systems, with maximum preparation for this specific task, they will destroy only about seven drones - from among the first ones that approached the ship.
The results of the simulated tests were published in 2012. American specialists saw how helpless Navy ships would be against future "swarming" drone attacks, and this became one of the main motivations for developing LOCUST.
According to program manager Lee Mastroianni, autonomous swarming drone technology has never been tested on such a scale as it is now. He noted that even hundreds of drones will cost less than one fighter.
The US Office of Strategic Capabilities, which operates closely with the defense industry, was created to speed up the long, expensive and bureaucratic process of adopting a particular type of weapon. Management must integrate science and military industry. “Often people who have never met before are natural partners in creating promising weapons. We must use this situation for constructive purposes,” William Roper, head of the US Strategic Capabilities Directorate, explained his tasks to reporters.
“We want to give commanders undeniable advantages during combat operations over the enemy. We take risky concepts and bring the result of the work to a state where it can be used in combat,” the Pentagon official emphasizes.
Such American developments should be regarded as a serious threat,
The American army showed the capabilities of one of the the latest developments in the field of unmanned aircraft - “swarming” microdrones. Yesterday, January 9, the results of tests of Perdix drones equipped with artificial intelligence and capable of acting in a “pack”.
Tests of miniature drones took place on October 25 last year, but they became known only yesterday. During testing, three US Navy F/A-18 Super Hornets launched 103 miniature Perdix drones, which then formed a “swarm” and carried out a reconnaissance mission. The drones were dropped from special hanging containers. The testing site was the China Lake military base (California).
Perdix drone testing
The tests took place as part of a special study by the Strategic Capabilities Office (SCO), which examined the possibilities of using drones and their autonomous operation. Now the drone operator does not need to control each individual drone: for example, it is enough to set a target for reconnaissance, after which the drones independently follow it and circle, transmitting reconnaissance information. At the same time, drones are able to “communicate” with each other, coordinating their movements and flight directions.
“Due to the complex nature of combat, Perdix are not pre-programmed drones. They are a collective organism that makes decisions with a single divided brain, like swarms in nature. Because each Perdix communicates and cooperates with other members of the swarm, the swarm has no leader and can seamlessly adapt to new circumstances, acting alone, in small or large groups.", said SCO Chief William Roper.
The Perdix is a disposable, relatively inexpensive reconnaissance drone that can be deployed for additional reconnaissance prior to air strikes. The drone is made of plastic, equipped with a small electric motor with a pushing propeller, as well as a video camera and a radio transmitter (the video and radio signals are transmitted to the pilot and the command center).
One of the Perdix drone prototypes.
dronereview.com
Perdix is designed to be launched from an aircraft and quickly collect critical data that will allow pilots to better identify and strike targets, Roper said. Perdix was originally designed to launch “flocks” of drones that could attack or distract ground-based air defense systems, but as the project progresses, the military is finding more and more uses for disposable drones.
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