UAS developments and/or issues

gf0012-aust

gf0012-aust

Grumpy Old Man
Staff member
Verified Defense Pro
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #42
swerve said:
Not too pricey for shooting down dirt cheap commercial drones?

I'd like something that doesn't cost a thousand times as much per round than the targets.
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funnily enough I worked on a private recoiless weapons project, one of our prposals way back in 2004 was to have recoiless shotguns mounted on UAVs to go out and kill other UAVs.

at the time we were told that UAVs would never hit that capability level.

maybe time to dust it off again :)
 
gf0012-aust

gf0012-aust

Grumpy Old Man
Staff member
Verified Defense Pro
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #44
swerve said:
Interesting. I think that control could be the biggest problem.
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finesse in final handling on contact was always the biggest headache

hence also the reason why shotguns were then the most viable on board weapon due to area of effect issues

the alternative was to use strengthened radio controlled fixed wing models to ram (which is interesting when you look at recent german solutions of using raptors to grapple them down)
 
Blue Jay

Blue Jay

Member
gf0012-aust said:
breaking defense op-ed on the future of UAS

the issue of acting as a bearer/node has been discussed in here in the forum in the past, and the trend on using them as kamikaze assets has been an ISIS construct for the last few years

Forget The Terminator; Suicide & Data Drones Are Future, Says SCO’s Roper « Breaking Defense - Defense industry news, analysis and commentary
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Once you start using drones as kamikaze assets, where's the line between them and say, TLAMs? Sure cruise missiles have much more capability, but a drone packed with explosives that is crashed into a target is essentially a prop-driven missile or a flying bomb. If remotely piloted not very different from early TV guided ordnance either.

They are essentially tactical PGMs.
 
gf0012-aust

gf0012-aust

Grumpy Old Man
Staff member
Verified Defense Pro
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #55
Blue Jay said:
Once you start using drones as kamikaze assets, where's the line between them and say, TLAMs? Sure cruise missiles have much more capability, but a drone packed with explosives that is crashed into a target is essentially a prop-driven missile or a flying bomb. If remotely piloted not very different from early TV guided ordnance either.

They are essentially tactical PGMs.
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in contemporary terms, ISIS have had a running POC for the last 2 years - granted its only getting air time in the public arena now, but their use of low cost COTS UAS as PGMs as well as a weapons bearers has caused problems for vehicle convoys where they will direct them on to any vehicle with an exposed operator - such as weapons handler

(they've also harnessed 3D printers to make cheap grenade release carriers)
 
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