One of the most dangerous and upcoming technology today is the ‘The Drone’. Ruso-Ukraine war that  begun in 2022 brought about a major new dimension to warfare, ‘The Drone Wars’. Both countries have been using drones extensively, for both reconnaissance and attack purposes. One of the biggest truth of the drone war has been the success of ‘Kamikaze drones’ to identify and destroy enemy artillery and tanks costing millions, using commercially available drones.

 

The whole military and warfare technology world is now worried about drones. Long range unmanned drones communicating with the enemy’s satellite network can launch attacks virtually anywhere, and remain impossible to identify as ‘enemy aircraft’. Short-range commercial drones with modified release systems or Kamikaze  functioning can create havoc across the border, killing both personnel and machines, both of which can be sometimes impossible to replace.

 

These RF systems provide the handler with ‘First Person View’ (FPV) which is similar to a cockpit pilot watching the ground down below, only the handler is using a wireless camera to gather the FPV intelligence. This FPV can be used to chase targets on the ground, and, if the drone is loaded with relevant weaponry or is itself a ‘flying bomb’, the target can be physically chased using FPV and attacked ‘at will’. 

 

RF systems are also used to communicate with the drone, as an example, to chase targets, attack, release payload, get back to base, etc. Some of these programs can also be automated, specially with reconnaissance drones, where attack is usually not the target. Most drones also provide their location coordinates using the GPS constellation, and hence the handlers can capture geo-coordinates of relevant targets.

 

More sophisticated drone systems working in ‘master-slave’ configuration allows for a combination of reconnaissance and attack, and swarms allow for multiple drones to be controlled from one system, or a ‘master’.

 

High altitude drones are capable of reconnaissance at extremely high altitudes, and use sophisticated satellite communication, both to take orders and to send intelligence gathered to the base. Some of the more sophisticated systems are partially solar powered, are able to glide and are manufactured using equipment that provides ‘stealth’ support.

 

With such sophisticated drone technology at play, every military arsenal today needs to develop a response that can stop and/or restrict the drone menace.

 

Taragein is pioneering this new technology, which falls in the ‘Electronic Warfare’ (EW) space, and is broadly called ‘Anti-Drone’ systems. Anti-Drone technology basically works on the premise that drones need to communicate with their handler/base using wireless (RF) systems and hence, if this communication is blocked, or intercepted, the drone warfare can be made ineffective, and, in certain cases, enemy drones can be captured. Various technologies are at play:

 

• Drone location using FDOA and TDOA, or a combination of the two.

• Drone signature and identification.

• Jamming the drone communication frequencies.

• GPS Spoofing and hacking the communication interface.

• Capture the drone or destroy it harmlessly, or ensure it crashes in enemy territory.

 

These EW systems require sophisticated tracking and response systems that can include RF transceivers, Radar Systems, multiple high-gain antennas, drone hacking systems and radio jammers. The more powerful the EW system, the more chances of safeguarding the ‘Area Of interest’ (AOI) from drone attacks.