Loitering munitions are cheap and using missiles proves costly against them.
Drones offer a "risk-free" solution on a battlefield. An unmanned vehicle that can conduct strikes, and carry out surveillance without risking human life. First used in the Balkans War, their use has evolved and their deployment is central on the frontline. Ukrainians countered the asymmetry between them and Russia by creating an ecosystem of drones/robots that strike the enemy in a limited capacity but help them to stay at war.
The excessive use of drones in war and their capability to overwhelm an air defence system has brought focus on how to neutralize the threat. Experts at the NDTV Defence Summit answer questions related to drone warfare and how they can be countered.
Lt General Sunil Srivastava (retired), Former Director of the Centre for Joint Warfare Studies, suggested some ways to counter such threats. Speaking at the maiden NDTV Defence Summit, General Srivastava said, "Both Russia and Ukraine have built an ecosystem of drones, mass production is taking place. Crowdsourcing and volunteers are coming up and drones are being produced without trial evaluation using various technologies on which their counter-jamming systems are not effective. Therefore the attrition rate is very high but it is letting them stay in the fight."
"Using nets, laser systems like Israel's Iron Beam, and electronic jammers are currently the most effective and cheap ways to counter drones. The Israeli Iron Beam has been effective and I think lasers, and jammers are needed to counter them," he added.
"There has been a significant spike in the way robotic platforms are being used. It is indicating a doctrinal shift and robots are here to play an important role and 10-15% of robots will be there in future forces. This indicates two things - Drone help in persistence in Tactical Battle Areas (TBA) and the combination of AI, and modern tech can make any cheap drone very powerful," Sameer Joshi, a defence expert said.
Yesterday, Ukrainian drones attacked a metal plant in Russia's Kursk, causing a fire at a fuel tank. Kyiv meanwhile announced it had intercepted dozens of Russian drones, as both sides launched a wave of overnight aerial attacks in an attempt to hit targets deep behind the front lines. Countries like Britain are also increasing their funding for drones to Ukraine. The UK has increased the funding by 125 million pounds and will supply over 10,000 drones to Ukraine. The reason behind the move is - Drones are cheap and have a better accuracy to strike and help achieve strategic objectives, even though limited, but enough to wage a limited offensive.
Ukrainian forces have launched a wave of drone attacks at Russian energy facilities in recent months, trying to target the country's vital energy and gas sector that it says Russia uses to fuel its invasion. Ukraine also said that Russia fired 42 Iran-designed attack drones and five missiles at its territory overnight in a barrage that injured at least seven people.
Loitering munitions and robots are cheap and using conventional missiles proves costly according to a cost-benefit analysis. For example: Israel's Iron Dome system is one of the most effective air defense systems in the world with over 90% efficacy but a salvo of rockets fired by Hamas on October 7 proved how the system can be overwhelmed. A Tamir Missile of the system costs around $100,000 and a Hamas rocket is worth $500.