The UK has made radio wave weapons that can shoot down drones for 10p per shot. Trials for the weapon were completed at a weapons range in West Wales, which was also the largest counter-drone swarm exercise the British Army has ever conducted.
According to the British Ministry of Defence (MOD), the “weapon system demonstrator is a type of Radiofrequency Directed Energy Weapon (RF DEW) and has proven capable of neutralising multiple targets simultaneously with near-instant effect.”
In other words, the system uses high-frequency radio waves to disrupt or damage critical electronic components inside drones. This can result in the loss of flight controls or connection, causing the drone to crash. The RF DEW system can take down airborne targets up to 1 KM away with “near-instant effect”. They are also effective against targets that can resist usual electronic warfare methods.
Sgt Mayers, a senior remotely-piloted air systems operator from the 106 Regiment Royal Artillery, had the honour of being the first to test the new weapon. He claims that the demonstrator was “quick to learn and easy to use” and, with improvements in range and power, could be a “great asset to layered air defence.” The MOD claims that more than 100 drones were tracked and taken down by the weapon during the trials.
The UK government has invested nearly £40 million in RF DEW research so far and plans to spend more to get past the demonstrator stage. Operational deployment will require further work on the weapon, as one of its primary drawbacks is that while it can take down multiple drones at once, it lacks target discrimination, making friendly fire a very real possibility.
This isn’t the first time the British have tried non-traditional ways of taking down drones either. In 2024, a high-energy laser weapon was demonstrated that could be mounted on an armoured vehicle and used to destroy airborne drones.
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