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Drone warfare shocked the world in the 21st century, in not only targeted killings in unconventional conflicts but also conventional warfare—particularly in the South Caucasus and Eastern Europe. Due to fears of drone strikes and suicide first-person view drones, this particular warfare is being carefully studied for preparations on how to counter it.
Major defense mechanisms are being developed worldwide to eliminate the threat of drone swarms, and one such involves laser weapons development.
Growing Fears of Drone Warfare
Drone warfare became prominent in unconventional conflicts originally in the early 2000s. The United States military used drone strikes for targeted killings of high-valued leaders of terrorist organizations such as al-Qaeda, the Taliban, and ISIS. However, the true fears of drone warfare were realized in modern conventional wars, particularly the Armenian-Azerbaijan conflict and the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
During the Second Karabakh War, Azerbaijan initially faced stiff resistance from Armenian forces and could not penetrate their defensive lines, losing several dozen armored vehicles. Supplemented by Turkish-made drones from the Baykar corporation, known as TB2 Bayraktar, Azerbaijan penetrated Armenian lines of defense while Israeli-made reconnaissance drones helped plot targets.
Azerbaijan would purposely disseminate the drone videos as psychological warfare, and the TB2s gained notoriety. Bayraktar drones would further be used in conflicts in Ethiopia, Central Asia, Syria, Libya, and Ukraine.
During the Russian invasion of Ukraine, both Kyiv and Moscow have used loitering munitions extensively. First-person view (FPV) drones are used against armor, artillery, command posts, and troops. Both Ukraine and Russia post videos continuously for psychological warfare and troop motivation.
Loitering munitions during a war is critical in supplementing artillery shortages, but they are also used in more deadly methods. Thermite and double-barrel shotguns have been attached to Ukrainian drones to combat interceptions and destroy trench fortifications of the Russian military.
Nevertheless, electronic countermeasures and extensive Russian air defense have also turned off some loitering munitions, such as the Bayraktars and Shaheds. Kyiv and Moscow adapted to using fiber optic drones (drones controlled by thin, unjammable fiber-optic cables), bypassing air defenses. Fears of fiber optics and drone swarms from the ongoing Ukraine War have forced various countries to adjust to anti-drone laser-based systems to disable the fear of drones.
US Countermeasures Through Laser Weaponry
A major countermeasure to prepare for drone swarms is laser-based systems, which are not only effective but also affordable and durable for conventional and unconventional attacks. Laser weaponry can detonate the fuel in drones, turn off their sensors, and prevent aerodynamic failure from hampering flight time by causing blind spots in the feed.
The United States produced several major anti-drone countermeasures via the Raytheon Technologies, the H4. The H4, which incorporates a 10-kilowatt (10 kW) high-energy laser (HEL) weapon system, protects against short-ranged aerial threats, tracks, and eliminates short and medium-sized drone swarms, and will be fitted for the US Air Force.
The US Army utilized HELs for land forces and incorporated Raytheon’s technology for the Directed Energy Maneuver-Short Range Air Defense (DE M-SHORAD). The system is currently deployed in undisclosed theaters and has undergone over 25,000 hours of operational testing, certifying HELs for immediate combat.
Michael Hofle, the senior director of HEL weapon systems for Raytheon Technologies, explained that even though HEL is not 100% effective in weather, it is a cost-cutting technology in wars of attrition that include economics. HELs are an alternative to hundreds of thousands and million-dollar missile interceptors.
Other Countries Developing Laser-Based Systems
Britain’s DragonFire laser-based system was effective in its trials and is successful enough to deploy five years earlier than expected. It has a timeline to be fitted on warships and other platforms by 2027 instead of 2032.
The People’s Republic of China developed the Red Wing Vanguard, a laser-based system that can intercept drones from one kilometer away. The Red Wing Vanguard can be mounted on amphibious vessels, making contingency plans to defend Taiwan even more crucial as Beijing looks to counter the drone swarm defense IndoPACOM plans to implement for Taipei.
Simultaneously, Taiwan is developing a 50-kilowatt laser to counter the threat of drones from the People’s Liberation Army, which will attempt to conduct decapitation strikes against critical infrastructure in Taipei to force the Taiwanese government into a quick capitulation before direct American intervention.
Israel is in the final stages of deploying the Iron Beam anti-drone High Energy Laser Weapon System (HELWS). The Iron Beam can intercept various drones several kilometers away and counteract drones cost-effectively. Due to multiple militias in different countries under IRGC control that send drones and projectiles, the Israeli Defense Forces must adapt to cheaper methods of intercepting projectiles in the conflict of attrition.
South Korea has officially deployed the Block-1 anti-drone laser system to the capital of Seoul and frontline units close to the DMZ. Fears of North Korea deploying drone swarms are forcing South Korea to enact stronger air defense measures, especially as the DPRK grows a hostile military alliance with Russia.
Drone warfare and the mass swarms they bring in conventional conflicts and terrorist attacks are the new reality of the world, and laser-based systems are an effective countermeasure to the growing threats. Cost-cutting, effective, and proficient laser-based systems against drone warfare can ultimately save lives on the battlefield and at home if deployed effectively.
[Public domain photo, via Wikimedia Commons
The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author.
Julian McBride is a forensic anthropologist and independent journalist born in New York. He is the founder and director of the Reflections of War Initiative (ROW), an anthropological NGO which aims to tell the stories of the victims of war through art therapy. As a former Marine, he uses this technique not only to help heal PTSD but also to share people’s stories through art, which conveys “the message of the brutality of war better than most news organizations.”
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