Loitering munition
A loitering munition, also known as a suicide drone,[1][2][3][4] kamikaze drone,[5][6][7] or exploding drone,[8] is a kind of aerial weapon with a built-in warhead that is typically designed to loiter around a target area until a target is located, then attack the target by crashing into it.[9][10][11] Loitering munitions enable faster reaction times against hidden targets that emerge for short periods without placing high-value platforms near the target area and also allow more selective targeting as the attack can be changed mid-flight or aborted.
Not to be confused with Unmanned combat aerial vehicle.
Loitering munitions fit in the niche between cruise missiles and unmanned combat aerial vehicles (UCAVs or combat drones), sharing characteristics with both. They differ from cruise missiles in that they are designed to loiter for a relatively long time around the target area, and from UCAVs in that a loitering munition is intended to be expended in an attack and has a built-in warhead. As such, they can also be considered a nontraditional ranged weapon.
Loitering weapons first emerged in the 1980s for use in the Suppression of Enemy Air Defenses (SEAD) role against surface-to-air missiles (SAMs) and were deployed in that role with a number of military forces in the 1990s. Starting in the 2000s, loitering weapons were developed for additional roles ranging from relatively long-range strikes and fire support down to tactical, very short range battlefield systems that fit in a backpack.
Countermeasures[edit]
Russia uses the ZALA Lancet drones in Ukraine. Since spring 2022 Ukrainian forces have been building cages around their artillery pieces using chain link fencing, wire mesh and even wooden logs as part of the construction. One analyst told Radio Liberty that such cages were "mainly intended to disrupt Russian Lancet munitions." A picture supposedly taken from January 2023 shows the rear half of a Lancet drone that failed to detonate due to such cages. Likewise Ukrainian forces have used inflatable decoys and wooden vehicles, such as HIMARS, to confuse and deceive Lancet drones.[44][45]
Ukrainian soldiers report shooting down Russian drones with sniper rifles.[46] Russian soldiers use electronic warfare to disable or misdirect Ukrainian drones and have reportedly used the Stupor anti-drone rifle, which uses an electromagnetic pulse that disrupts a drone's GPS navigation.[47] A Royal United Services Institute study in 2022 found that Russian Electronic Warfare units, in March and April 2022, knocked out or shot down 90% of Ukrainian drones that they had at the start of the war in February 2022. The main success was in jamming GPS and radio links to the drones.[48]
Both Ukraine and Russia rely on electronic warfare to defeat FPV drones. Such jammers are now used on Ukrainian trenches and vehicles.[49] Russian forces have built jammers that can fit into a backpack.[50] And now pocket size jammers exist for soldiers.[51] As of June 2023 Ukraine was losing 5-10,000 drones a month, or 160 per day, according to
Ukrainian soldiers. Previously they could fly their drones for kilometres, now they are lucky if they can get 500 metres in the air.[52]
This has led to Russia creating wire guided FPV drones, similar to a wire-guided missile or even wire guided torpedoes. One drone captured by Ukrainian forces had "nearly seven miles (just over 10.8 kilometers)" of fibre optic cable. Such guidance would make the link between operators and FPV drone immune to jamming. It would also allow for much faster updates from the drone. However these drones would lack the manoeuvrability that wireless drones enjoy.[53] Ukraine has also responded by using autonomous drones tasking to ensure that a jammed drone can hit a target. In March 2024 footage put on social media showed a Ukrainian FPV drone being jammed just before it struck a target. Despite the loss of operator control it still managed to strike the target.[54]
Russian tanks have been fitted with rooftop slat armor at the beginning of the Russian invasion of Ukraine which could provide protection against loitering munitions in some circumstances. Some Ukrainian tanks taking part in the 2023 Ukrainian counteroffensive were also spotted using roof screens.[55][56][57]
On 21 March 2024, recent footage of the submarine Tula showed that it has been fitted with a 'cope cage' to prevent drone strikes, the first ocean going asset to carry such a modification.[58]
– IAI Harpy, IAI Harop,[89][90] SkyStriker, Warmate, Trinetra, Nagastra series, ALS-50,[91] Johnnette JM-1, Shaurya-1
India
– Shahed 131, Shahed 136 (loitering capabilities disputed),[92][93] Hesa Ababil-2, Raad 85, Arash-2, Meraj-521, Meraj-532, Zhubin, Shahin-1, Shahed 238 and possibly others[94][95][96][97]
Iran
– IAI Harpy, IAI Harop, IAI Harpy NG, IAI Green Dragon, IAI Rotem L, Orbiter 1K,[98] Delilah, SkyStriker,[99][100] Spike Firefly, HERO loitering munitions series,[101][102][103][104] Viper,[105] Lanius,[106] Point Blank,[107] SpyX,[108] and upgraded variants.[109]
Israel
– IAI Harop
Singapore
– AX-2 Predator
Slovakia
- Q-SLAM-40
Spain
– Kamin-25
Sudan
– SkyStriker
Turkmenistan
– AeroVironment Switchblade, Phoenix Ghost, Raytheon Coyote,[142] HERO 120, Point Blank, ALTIUS-600M.
United States
– RAM II, Switchblade, ST-35 Silent Thunder, Phoenix Ghost, Warmate, Bober, AQ-400 Scythe, UJ-25 Skyline
Ukraine
As of 2023, loitering munitions are used by the armed forces of several countries, including: