Photo:
DRDO, India
“Small things make big
change”, stands strong in modern day warfare. Small autonomous systems are
bringing a huge impact on larger and more critical infrastructure. In the ongoing
Russia-Ukraine war, the impact of kamikaze drones and suicide boats has changed
modern day warfare strategies. Countries across the globe are spending billions
developing counter systems to neutralise these types of threats. One such
counter system is DEW (directed energy weapon)
Directed energy weapons
are systems which use concentrated electromagnetic energy to neutralise the
target on which it is targeted. This system uses magnified lasers or
electromagnetic rays like high power microwaves or millimetre waves. Unlike
traditional explosives, it degrades the electronics on the system or physically
destroys the system
The development of high energy
weapons dates back to the 1930s when Germany developed particle beam weapons
that used X-ray to neutralise targets. In 1980, a breakthrough in this field
occurred when US President Ronald Reagan introduced his “Star Wars” programme
where he initiated the development of a particle beam accelerator. Initial
tests were satisfactory but due to its complex technology and rising
developmental cost, plans were dropped in favour of traditional missile systems
which were cheap and could be produced quickly during the Cold War period.
In the early 21st century,
countries across the world realised that autonomous systems coordinated by
manned assets were going to rule the battlezone, which made many traditional
war tactics invalid, and critical assets became vulnerable to these threats.
The techniques which are employed to down the critical assets are a fraction of
the cost and deploying a missile to neutralise it doesn't make sense completely
to the taxpayers. This made budget makers invest in more cost effective
solutions like DEW and passive tech to neutralise a threat, Initially, USA and
Israel co-developed Tactical High-Energy Laser (THEL), which successfully
destroyed an incoming artillery shell with pinpoint accuracy. This proved the
versatile application of laser, and soon many countries around the world started
to roll out their laser systems.
India in the field of
lasers
When it comes to India,
in the period of 1990s, DRDO’s laboratory LASTEC (laser science and technology
centre) initiated the development of high-energy systems which were later
experimented for the first time in 2001 at Hindon Airforce Base. Then gradually
this grabbed the attention of the Indian armed forces and more futuristic
projects were initiated to demonstrate the niche technology to the world like
Kali, Durga Adithya etc. Over the period, the lab developed and rolled out
various systems which could produce an output ranging from 2KW to 100KW.
In 2021, cheap drones
from Pakistan dropped 2kg of IED on multi-million dollar assets present in an
airforce base in Jammu. This raised a serious question mark regarding base
defence against these small drones. Soon DRDO came up with a solution which
they have been working on for a long time, the “D-4 anti-drone system” which
meets all the requirements of the armed forces and came out with flying
colours. Soon Indian Navy ordered these systems to protect their frontline
warship and bases from these cheap assets.
Photo: DRDO, India
Future ahead
Keeping future
requirements in mind, the Armed Forces have initiated projects with respect to
their domains. When it comes to the Indian Navy, it has initiated a project to
develop a modular compact shipborne 30 kW DEW system which should have the
ability to locate and neutralise targets like swarm drones, loitering
munitions, small boats and USVs. The technical parameter is as follows: the all-up
weight of this system should be maximum of 8 tonnes. It should be an all weather
versatile system and should qualify all military grade qualifications. The
system should contain an inbuilt jammer in it to disrupt the communication
between the drones and USV. The system's integral radar should have detection
and tracking capability with 360 degree coverage for aerial and surface
targets. The radar should have the capability for detection and tracking of mini/micro
drone (0.01m2 RCS) with a detection range of 10 km and a tracking range of 8 km.
The weapon control system of this system should be of modular design and open
architecture including Plug and Play feature to interface with other user defined
equipment/hardware. The reaction time of the system to detect-track-neutralise the
target should be less than 20 seconds.
DRDO labs are also
working on a compact airborne laser pod which can generate 3-5 KW power, which
will be fitted on helicopters. A few projects are also under development for
making compact, modular and rugged systems specific to army and air force requirements,
which serve the purpose of convoy protection and base defence.
Conclusion
To conclude, Indian Armed Forces are moving in the right
track towards futuristic technology, to counter future threats in the right way
at the right time. Directed energy weapons are still not a proven tech like
conventional missiles, but soon they will be deployed in active combat duties
with the forces around the world including us!
Article
by D. Rethik (Twitter @RETHIK5706)