Vikram Mittal
In the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine, innovation in drone and counter-drone technology has become a defining feature of the battlefield. Since many counter-drone systems work by jamming the radio signals controlling the drones, both Russia and Ukraine are increasingly using “jam-proof” drones that communicate over lightweight fiber-optic cables. The lightweight cable is wrapped onto a spool mounted to the drone. It unspools as the drone flies, allowing the drone operator to maintain a communication connection even in the presence of jamming. Regardless, in the cat-and-mouse game of drone and counter-drone technology, even these drones have inherent vulnerabilities that both countries will soon exploit.
The challenge of countering these tethered drones goes beyond their immunity to jamming. Since jamming is ineffective, Ukrainian and Russian forces have to use kinetic methods to counter them. However, many kinetic counter-drone systems rely on the radio signal from the drone, which includes the video feed, for detection. This signal is then triangulated to determine the drone's precise position. With fiber-optic drones, these feeds are transmitted to the operator over the cable, leaving no detectable signal.
Although these fiber-optic controlled drones cannot be detected through their radio signature, there are other methods for detection. A recent article by Business Insider indicated that Kara Dag, a Ukrainian technology company, has proposed using acoustic and visual signatures, combined with advanced processing techniques, to detect these tethered drones. Once detected, the Ukrainians can counter the drone through a series of kinetic methods. Meanwhile, the Russian Ministry of Radioelectronic Industry is soliciting information from the defense community on how to detect and potentially defeat these drones. Many of their proposals are similarly focusing on acoustic and visual detection of these drones.
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