American overkill, it's contagious lol

[Sam1]

This is pretty awesome,  one of our allies used a $3,000,000 patriot missile to shoot down a store-bought quadcopter (not a training exercise).

http://www.bbc.com/news/technology-39277940

[WindHawk]

Why should our "allies" worry about the cost?  They aren't paying the bills.

[Ugly]

I'm sure it was on our dime. Pathetic! A potato gun would've done the job. 

[btq96r]

In Iraq and Syria, ISIS is using Radio Shack quality remote control drones to carry munitions.  I saw video of it in a PBS Frontline episode.  This is going to become a standard capability threat from the bad guys that will need to be planned for, countered, and doing it with Patriot missiles just isn't affordable, it's not practical considering how many we (don't) have to deploy around the world. 

Time for Stinger/Avenger equipped ADA units to get out of detainee ops and the guard towers, and back to the drawing board on how to support Brigade and Below from this kind of threat.

Edited March 16, 2017 by btq96r

[TNWNGR]

I'd hope that someone could come up with a more affordable anti drone system then a $38,000.00 Stinger Missile. They might be more cost effective then a Patriot Missile but given the proliferation of commercial drones and their being weaponized somethings needed.

[Wingshooter]

Shotgun with bird shot?

 

Honestly, it seems like some simple, well-placed and well-planned radio interference might though these amateur quadcopters off balance easier than anything

[btq96r]

Shotgun with bird shot?
 
Honestly, it seems like some simple, well-placed and well-planned radio interference might though these amateur quadcopters off balance easier than anything

The air and movement aspects of a drone are the issue here. A jammer bubble only goes so far up and out. Off the shelf drones are already capable of a decent altitude if you get the right model. Even if that limits/negates the attack ability, it still leaves a reconnaissance/surveillance use for the other side to have.

Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk just to give Oh Shoot something to be grumpy about.

[gjohnsoniv]

Wonder if an airburst 40mm would be a solution. 

[JAB]

You know what I want to see?  I want to see the U.S. and our allies protect against these enemy drones with drones of 'our' own.  Imagine a purpose built, more powerful and lightly armored interceptor drone equipped with something like a .22LR 'Vulcan' cannon.  Would probably want a centerfire round about the size/weight of a .22LR for more reliability but y'all get what I am saying.  Attach a few of those piloted by highly trained drone pilots to every fighting unit in the area and let the fun begin!

Hell, I see a business opportunity here:

Now YOU can be a Top Gun!!!

"For the low price of $450* you can purchase your very own combat drone.  The drone will be deployed in theater where hostiles are using drones to attack U.S. troops and our allies but will be controlled, from the safety and security of your own home, by YOU via a high-speed Internet connection!  That's right - now YOU can join in the defense of our brave fighting forces without ever leaving your couch.  Think that dogfighting simulator on your console game system is fun?  Well, try your hand at real, live air combat!"

*$450 covers the price of a basic drone with a single .22 caliber mini-cannon with 500 rounds of specialty ammunition.  Subsequent supplies of ammunition as well as available upgrades in armor, firepower and drone capabilities cost extra.  Before engaging in actual combat, pilot training is mandatory at a one-time fee of $1,500 per pilot.

Even if the government and allies subsidized costs, etc. for the 'Civilian Air Defense Program and Drone Warfare Initiative' it would still cost less than the U.S. government and our allies trying to pay for a drone defense program outright.

 

Edited March 16, 2017 by JAB

[Sam1]

19 hours ago, btq96r said:

 

Time for Stinger/Avenger equipped ADA units to get out of detainee ops and the guard towers, and back to the drawing board on how to support Brigade and Below from this kind of threat.

Yep, we've had well over a decade of almost no advancement for anything other than big ticket items.  Couldn't have said it better myself.

[Garufa]

19 hours ago, Wingshooter said:

Shotgun with bird shot?

I'm thinking an old Marlin Super Goose 10 would be more than adequate.  The entire weapons system with ammo should only cost a few hundred bucks in startup and a coupla bucks per shot after that.

[Shorty]

Arm up a couple of Fire Scout UAVS like a mini Apache and go to work.  They already developed them, might as well have some fun with them.

[TNWNGR]

1 hour ago, Garufa said:

I'm thinking an old Marlin Super Goose 10 would be more than adequate.  The entire weapons system with ammo should only cost a few hundred bucks in startup and a coupla bucks per shot after that.

Nice. But most of the better quadcopters fly at 200 to 500 feet and one European fellow took one up to 11,000 feet and posted a video. He'd completely bypassed a software black preventing the quadcopter from flying that high. You probably won't find the video because he pulled it. So obviously something specifically designed to shoot down weaponized commercial UAV's is long overdue.

 

[btq96r]

3 hours ago, Sam1 said:

...we've had well over a decade of almost no advancement for anything other than big ticket items.

Doctrine has fallen off as much as the tools.  Air Defense has had their advancements and employment, but at the higher support levels.  Patriot batteries are actually the most deployed units in the Army from what I heard in a symposium talk from the Army's Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations earlier in the week.  Another GWOT tool, C-RAM (land version of the phalanx system), is great for fixed sites like large bases and how the Israeli's employ it for Iron Dome...but isn't feasible as an enabler for brigade down to company levels where troops need air defense again. 

After the Iraq invasion we pretty much ignored any kind of planning and tactical consideration of enemy air assets.  I'd hope the Army got back to it as part of full spectrum ops, but I doubt the skill set has been built back up to match the current threat.

In combating off the shelf drones, the tech for target tracking is there to put something like a 240 and it into a system that can target and engage drones.  That system could be put onto a few vehicles for every maneuverer company and operated by an attached ADA team or cross-trained with infantry or other combat arms units.  It won't be a 100% solution, but could help close the gap some.

[Capbyrd]

On March 15, 2017 at 11:11 PM, Wingshooter said:

Honestly, it seems like some simple, well-placed and well-planned radio interference might though these amateur quadcopters off balance easier than anything

 

Wouldn't work with most of the commercial units currently available.  They are programmable and run off GPS.  Even if the GPS gets jammed, the copter is going to try and land itself and they use lidar and other systems to keep from hitting anything.  

[Ski]

I think an EMP cannon may be one of the answers, but I'm not sure what the range is now.  Several years ago the range was a couple hundred yards.

[Old Mitch]

We've got stuff, you just haven't heard about it yet. 

And, it's only a matter of time til terrorists, some of our own stupid redneck Klan types, or even some of our less pacifistic Lefties, kill someone with a cheap drone carrying a stick of dynamite, right here in the US.  

[Johnny Rotten]

This video has been on several hummer forums , totally fake, give them credit on their editing ability