AIR POWER DEVELOPMENT CENTRE BULLETIN

COUNTERING UNMANNED AERIAL VEHICLES

‘You need to put drones under control; you need to layout certain rules of engagement in order to prevent or minimise collateral casualties.’

- Vladimir Putin

Cheap and easy-to-operate unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) have proliferated globally over the past decade. The employment of small UAVs was initially restricted to surveillance and reconnaissance but it was not long before their potential to carry out targeted attacks was being leveraged by non-state militant groups. In both Iraq and Syria, the Islamic State (IS) has deployed them for tactical military purposes. This expansion in militant capabilities has necessitated the development of counter-UAV (C-UAV) systems to address this emerging challenge. The trend was underlined by the open displays of C-UAV systems at the recent Eurosatory defence exhibition in Paris.

More than two years ago, the IS started to use commercially available UAVs to carry out attacks with improvised explosive devices (IEDs). Early this year, the Russian Ministry of Defence stated that Russian bases in Syria had been targeted through a mass attack by UAVs. It was also reported that these small UAVs were detected by air defence systems and shot down. Many manufacturers of small UAVs, such as Raytheon, have confirmed that commercially available off-the-shelf unmanned aerial systems can be easily weaponised and used by terrorists to threaten both civilian and military infrastructure.

Other than the use of small UAVs by non-state groups, mainly rebels and terrorists, they also pose a threat to civilian air traffic. Near-miss incidents in civilian airports have reportedly tripled over the past two years alone. The

potential exists for UAVs to be used for terrorist attacks on mass gatherings and symbolic targets that are not as well protected as military installations. They have also been employed to facilitate criminal activity, to carryout surveillance before a clandestine operation and also to carry contraband, without fear of the capture of human beings. Perhaps more worrying than any of these scenarios

is the potential for small UAVs to create a serious aviation accident through an inadvertent collision with a commercial aircraft that could lead to great loss of life.

The increased threat from cheap and commercially available UAVs has led to more research into the factors involved in ensuring that their employment does not infringe on the safety requirements of commercial aviation as well as to ensure that they do not become part of the arsenal of terrorist and rebel groups. There is a consensus that C-UAV solutions must now be examined and developed, before a large scale accidental catastrophe or intended terrorist attack takes place. There is now a high probability that such an event could take place and that it

could not be easily identified or thwarted. Accordingly, a number of military forces across the world have started to investigate C-UAV solutions, especially against the smaller UAVs.

A range of C-UAV technologies has been developed and they cater for different situations. Since the smaller UAVs would be employed in different circumstances, the countermeasures also need to cater for the diversity of their

Issue 316, August 2018ISSN: 2205-0078 (Print) 2205-0086 (Online)

use. Kinetic responses, like the use of guns or missiles may not be an optimum solution when the UAVs are employed in urban, densely populated areas. The countermeasures and concepts of operations being developed include electronic jamming; capturing the UAVs with nets attached to other flying systems; kinetic destruction by shooting them down with bullets or missiles; and the employment of lasers.

The kinetic shoot down of UAVs can be achieved in several ways. Multiple kinds of sensors—electro-optical, infrared, radar, radio-frequency, acoustic and Doppler—can be used to detect, track and engage UAVs and, combined with guns, to shoot them down. This combination is a cost-effective option and can be used as a defence against a relatively inexpensive threat that the smaller UAVs represent. A slightly more sophisticated approach to C-UAVs is the system that uses a small tube-launched, expendable uninhabited system that could be flown individually or in swarms depending on the requirement. This system is equipped with a seeker and warhead and, when coupled with an advanced electronically scanned-array radar, becomes a formidable C-UAV system.

Another method to counter UAVs is through the use of laser technology. Laser effectors have already been used to ‘blind’—temporarily or permanently—the surveillance and reconnaissance payload of UAVs. More powerful lasers can be used to incapacitate the system completely, which would be akin to shooting it down. Jamming is also being considered as a viable option to counter uninhabited aerial systems. Frequencies that are commonly used to remotely control and transmit video by small UAVs can be easily jammed. It has been reported that such jamming either makes then land automatically, in which case they can be recovered; or return to their origin point permitting the operator to be tracked.

Experiments are also being conducted for the deployment of ‘capture nets’. These are nets fired from the ground, either from a static position or form the roof of a vehicle and deploys to cover an area of 250 meters by 10 meters. The net is capable of capturing UAVs moving up to speeds of 50 meters per second. A novel C-UAV capability is the use of birds of prey that have been trained to attack small UAVs. A YouTube video posted by the Dutch National Police shows an eagle snatching a target UAV from the air.

The C-UAV concept trend is towards preferring non-kinetic or soft-kill solutions like jamming or ‘hacking’ into

the systems. Primarily these activities are more reliable in terms of targeting and also can be employed against multiple UAV attacks, which is highly probable. Further, jamming small UAVs minimises the risk of collateral damage that would come with the kinetic shoot-down of UAVs with explosive payloads.

The C-UAV systems are being developed on a war footing as the potential for the rapid acquisition and deployment of small UAVs, obtained from open sources, has become an accepted threat to civilian and military activities alike. UAVs, used for benign purposes can pose a threat to commercial aviation, with an increasing number of near-misses being reported in the recent past. More importantly, non-state groups, terrorists and rebels, have started to use UAVs for traditional surveillance and reconnaissance but also to conduct lethal attacks. This trend is not only disruptive but also difficult to counter effectively.

The noticeable trend towards the increased use of UAVs by terrorist and rebel groups such as the IS has also resulted in a growing number of C-UAV solutions being developed. It remains a fact that commercially available small UAVs will continue to proliferate. It is also not deniable that their misuse poses a significant threat to the safety and security of a nation and its people. Whether the threat is unintended, as in the case of the probability of mid-air collisions with commercial aircraft, or an act of terrorism intended to kill people and disrupt normal life, the fact remains that proper regulatory and policing processes must be put in place to secure national airspace. The C-UAV developments are the first steps in this direction.

Key Points• The employment of small UAVs to carry out

targeted attacks is being leveraged by non-state militant groups.

• A number of military forces across the world are investigating C-UAV solutions, especially against the smaller UAVs.

• Irrespective of whether the threat is intended or unintended, proper regulatory and policing processes must be put in place to secure national airspace.

Air Power Development CentreF3-GF, PO Box 7932, Department of Defence

CANBERRA BC ACT 2610Ph: 02 6128 7041 Fax: 02 6128 7053

Email: airpower@defence.gov.auWeb: www.airforce.gov.au/airpower

Disclaimer: The views in this Pathfinder are not necessarily those of the RAAF