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☆ The US military isn't ready for the coming drone war
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-11 | by ( Jake Epstein | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +18 min

The Department of Defense is working on initiatives to face the drone threat, but the US military doesn't yet appear ready to confront this ever-evolving challenge, especially on the scale seen in Ukraine. AdvertisementA US military MQ-9 Reaper drone waits for take-off at Kandahar Air Base in Afghanistan on March 9, 2018. US military leaders have repeatedly stressed there's no silver bullet to defeat small drones in battle. Shellie HallStudents there spend several weeks learning how to identify, engage, and defeat small drones. The drone threat draws certain parallels to fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan, where hidden bombs posed a tremendous threat.

Persons: GENYA SAVILOV, Mick Ryan, hasn't, you've, Franz J, Marty, Samuel Bendett, Paul Scharre, that's, Mike Parent, Mark Schauer, Parent, Paul Butcher, Cpl, Doug Bush, Amber Osei, Moseph Sauda, doesn't, Sauda, America's, Bram Janssen, Scharre, Justin Bronk, Jack Watling, Ryan Organizations: Business, Troops, of Defense, Department of Defense, Getty, Australian Army, Islamic State, Kandahar Air Base, Defense Ministry, Karabakh . Defense Ministry, Azerbaijan, AP, Pentagon, US Army, Aircraft Systems, Solutions, 71st Jaeger Brigade, US Army Yuma, Technology, Army, sUAS University, US Marine Corps, Force, Central Command, Shellie, National Training Center, US Army Air Defense Artillery, Center, New, New American Security, Base, London's Royal United Services Institute Locations: Russian, Ukrainian, Ukraine, prowling, Jordan, Chasiv Yar, Donetsk, AFP, Afghanistan, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Russia, Nagorno, Karabakh, Avdiivka, Yuma, East, Oklahoma's Fort Sill, California, Fort Sill, China, Luhansk Region, Europe, Iran, New American, Iraq, Washington, Bagram, Kabul, Australian

☆ Ukraine wants interceptor drones to take out unmanned surveillance aircraft and blind the Russians without wasting missiles
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-04 | by ( Chris Panella | Ella Sherman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Ukraine is looking to build interceptor drones to hunt and take down Russian UAVs. On Wednesday, Mykhailo Fedorov, Ukraine's minister of digital transformation, announced that the country wants to begin building interceptor drones to take down Russia's surveillance UAVs, specifically Orlan, SuperCam, and ZALA drones. The interceptor drones, as Fedorov suggested, are a cheaper option for shooting down drones and UAVs so that Ukraine can preserve its air defenses. The Shahed Hunter system, an anti-drone defense system bought with funds from the UNITED24 crowdfunding platform, releases interceptor drones with heavy-duty nets to capture incoming enemy drones. These anti-drone systems can: detect enemy drones, jam GPS signals, intercept devices in the sky.

Persons: —, Mykhailo Fedorov, Fedorov, Evgeniy, Hunter Organizations: Service, NATO, AP Locations: Ukraine, Brave1, Ukrainian, Russian, Russia, Kyiv, Kyiv region, AP Ukraine, Avdiivka

☆ Video captures rare drone-on-drone combat as exploding Ukrainian quadcopters blow up Russian grenade-launching robots
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-01 | by ( Jake Epstein | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Two quadcopter drones can be seen on video blowing up Russia's unmanned ground vehicles, or UGVs. AdvertisementNewly released footage shows Ukrainian quadcopter drones blowing up Russian grenade-launching robots, offering a rare glimpse of unmanned systems fighting each other on the battlefield. A video of the Ukrainian drones incapacitating Russian combat UGVs in yesterday's battle in the Avdiiv direction. Saturday's engagement also underscores the emerging role of unmanned ground vehicles, or UGVs, in the war. He said it's unclear if the Russian UGVs in the video were sent into battle instead of soldiers or in tandem with them.

Persons: —, 2Orep1fTPk, H4QFlsEQBm — Samuel Bendett, Samuel Bendett, Bendett Organizations: Service, Mechanized Brigade, Center for Naval Analyses Locations: Ukraine, Russian, Soviet, Avdiivka, Moscow

☆ US troops are shooting at balloons to figure out how to beat one of the Ukraine war's most 'dangerous' and unpredictable weapons
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-13 | by ( Jake Epstein | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

Small drones have emerged as a serious problem on the modern battlefield, especially in Ukraine. Jake Epstein/Business InsiderThe Smart Shooter system is the kinetic follow to the electronic warfare component. In other words, the Smart Shooter is a much-needed asset that even a great marksman would likely find helpful. The Drone Buster and Smart Shooter don't necessarily need to be used together, but they work best if they are, Cameron said. The drones were unarmed, but they were meant to replicate a terrifying aspect of the evolving drone threat.

Persons: —, Jake Epstein, Moseph Sauda, Sauda, Jacob Cameron, Smart, Cameron Organizations: Service, National Guardsmen, Aircraft System, University, US Army, Wisconsin National Guardsmen, Islamic, Business, Smart, Wisconsin National Guardsman, Wisconsin National, The Guardsmen, Guardsmen Locations: Ukraine, Fort Sill, Oklahoma, Islamic State, Wisconsin

☆ She was fleeing with her grandson, who was holding a white flag. Then she was shot
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-26 | by ( Clarissa Ward | Eliza Mackintosh | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +15 min

Istanbul CNN —Sara Khreis replays the last day she spent with her mother over and over in her mind. Suddenly, they heard their neighbors outside screaming that an evacuation route had been organized: “Come on, get out, come on, get out!”Sara with her mother, Hala. Then they were on the street outside, joining a wave of other people holding white flags aloft: a universal symbol of surrender. The clip of Hala’s killing is one of a growing number that show unarmed civilians holding white flags being shot dead in Gaza. His father, holding a white flag, could be seen crying over his body.

Persons: Istanbul CNN — Sara Khreis, “, ” Sara, Hala, Sara, –, Tayem, Hala Khreis, ” Sara Khreis, Ramzi Abu Sahloul, Ahmed Hijazi, Hijazi, Sahloul, Hala’s, Cross, Hala didn’t, Mohammad, Faisel, ” Nour, Nour, ” Mohammad, Mohammad wasn’t, ‘, Heba, ” Heba, Youssuf Abdel A’atti, ” Abdel A’atti, Sara Khreis, …, ” CNN’s Scott McWhinnie, Gianluca Mezzofiore Organizations: Istanbul CNN, CNN, Human Rights Monitor, Israel Defense Forces, IDF, Turkish, International Committee, ICRC, Palestine Locations: Istanbul, Gaza, Hala, The Geneva, Gaza City, al, Palestinian, Turkey, Rafah

☆ Palestinians share their lives in war-torn Gaza via TikTok, X, and Instagram
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-19 | by ( Harmeet Kaur | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +18 min

Palestinians on social media are a window into the warLike millions of others around the world, Noor is witnessing the war in Gaza through the eyes of Palestinians who are sharing their daily realities on social media. Eyewitness accounts on social media are critical in understanding global conflicts, including past flare-ups between Israelis and Palestinians. Before October 2023, Azaiza had about 25,000 Instagram followers, according to the social media analytics firm Social Blade. Now watching from afar in Melbourne, she’s the one refreshing her social media feeds and anxiously texting relatives, friends and colleagues to make sure they’re safe. Mark Kerrison/In Pictures/Getty ImagesEven as people flock to learn from and support these Palestinians on social media, Noor says the exchange is overshadowed by feelings of powerlessness.

Persons: Motaz Azaiza, Azaiza, “, ” Noor, she’s, Noor, He’s, ”, It’s, ‘, ’, Leyla Hamed, Kanwal Ahmed, They’ve, Bisan Owda, hasn’t, Ahmed, Young, Hind Khoudary haven’t, “ Everyone’s, ” Ahmed, Zaina Arafat, Mark Kerrison, Marwa Fatafta, Clarissa Ward, Mohammed el, Sheikh Jarrah, Owda, Hind Khoudary, Plestia Alaqad, ” Alaqad, Alaqad, “ It’s, Sheikh Zayed Al, Hind, Syed Faizan Raza, Wael Al, Hamza Al, Mustafa Thuraya, Ahmad Hasaballah, Ismail al Dahdouh, ” Owda, Fatafta, ” Fatafta, She’s Organizations: CNN, Images Israel, European, Palestinian Ministry of Health, Reuters, Agence France, Presse, Israel Defense Forces, Getty, Gaza’s, Committee, Protect Journalists, Reporters, Palestinian, Israel, Quinnipiac University Locations: Gazan, Deir, Gaza, Israel, California, Noor isn’t, Iraq, London, Toronto, Palestinian American, Brooklyn, Instagram, European Union, Ramallah, East, North Africa, Egypt, Palestinian, East Jerusalem, Palestine, Australia, Melbourne, Sheikh Zayed Al Nahyan, Al, Gaza City, Anadolu, Gaza’s Old City, Islamabad, “, Jazeera, Rafah

Many countries are working on them — and neither China, Russia, Iran, India or Pakistan have signed a U.S.-initiated pledge to use military AI responsibly. Another AI project at Space Force analyzes radar data to detect imminent adversary missile launches, he said. One urgent challenge, says Jane Pinelis, chief AI engineer at Johns Hopkins University’s Applied Physics Lab and former chief of AI assurance in Martell’s office, is recruiting and retaining the talent needed to test AI tech. Testing and evaluation standards are also immature, a recent National Academy of Sciences report on Air Force AI highlighted. Might that mean the U.S. one day fielding under duress autonomous weapons that don’t fully pass muster?

Persons: —, Replicator —, Kathleen Hicks, ”, Gregory Allen, we’ve, Missy Cummings, George Mason, Lisa Costa, Wallace ‘ Rhet ’ Turnbull, Tom Siebel, Matt Visser, Palantir, Jack Shanahan, Maven, Mark Milley, Christian Brose, Paul Scharre, ” Anduril, Nathan Michael, Michael, Shanahan, Craig Martell, Martell, Jane Pinelis, “ Organizations: U.S ., Russia, Air Force, China, Pentagon, Department of Defense, Center for Strategic, International Studies, Navy, ” U.S . Space Force, Space Force, Space Systems Command, Blackhawk, ., U.S . Missile Defense Agency, Defense Counterintelligence, Security Agency, Third Infantry Division, NATO, Maven, National Geospatial - Intelligence Agency, U.S . Special Operations, ISIS, Command, Control, Chiefs, Armed Services Committee, U.S, Marines, Special Forces, Industry, BAT, Marine Expeditionary, Pentagon AI, LinkedIn, Johns Hopkins, Lab, National Academy of Sciences Locations: Md, Ukraine, U.S, China, Russia, Iran, India, Pakistan, ” U.S, Silicon Valley

☆ Israel won't make the same blunders with heavy armor as Russia did in Ukraine, commander says, as the country mobilizes 1,000 tanks
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-17 | by ( Mia Jankowicz | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

"We saw how the Russians fought in Ukraine and the mistakes they made," Brigadier General Hisham Ibrahim told The Economist. "They fought there in a single-corps fashion, instead of using combined arms tactics," he said of Russia's tank deployments. But Israel's tanks, Ibrahim said, have been trained on combined-arms tactics for several years now. Ukraine's tactics of using cheap drones and Next Generation Light Anti-Tank Weapons (NLAW) exacted a high price on Russia's tanks. As of July this year, Russia is estimated to have lost 2,000 tanks in Ukraine, The Moscow Times reported.

Persons: they've, Israel, —, Hisham Ibrahim, Ibrahim, he's, Ukraine's, Sem Fellman, Mattathias Schwarz Organizations: Service, Armored Corps, Israel Defense Force's, Hamas, The Moscow Times, NLAWs Locations: Ukraine, Gaza, Russia, Israel, Ukrainian

☆ How Hamas likely used rudimentary drones to 'blind and deafen' Israel's border and pave the way for its onslaught
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-10 | by ( Mia Jankowicz | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Hamas has shared drone footage, saying it used drones in its attack on Israel over the weekend. AdvertisementAdvertisementVideos circulated by Hamas suggest that a fleet of simple drones helped pave the way for its massive, deadly onslaught in Israel over the weekend. But experts, along with Hamas' own allies, have suggested that they were deployed early to help the militants cross the border. AdvertisementAdvertisementGaza |Hamas published footage showing their aerial attack on a merkava tank near the border, all soldiers inside were eliminated. IRNA shared an apparent training video of the rudimentary, fixed-wing Zouari drone.

Persons: —, Libby Weiss, James Patton Rogers, Patton Rogers, Israel, DroneSec, TIW0IibtZ4 — Younis Tirawi, IRNA, Mohamed Zouari, Al, Zawari, jerry, He's, Bernard Hudson Organizations: Service, Cornell University, CIA Locations: Israel, Ukraine, Gaza, Al Jazeera

☆ An Australian 'drone killer' air defense system could make it much cheaper for Ukraine to shoot Russian drones out of the sky
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-02 | by ( Mia Jankowicz | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

At around $1,000 a shot, it is meant to make shooting down Russian drones vastly cheaper. AdvertisementAdvertisementAn Australian defense company has developed a new weapon dubbed the "drone killer" that could help Ukraine face Russia's suicide drone barrages at a low cost. The weapon can be mounted on a truck and operated with a joystick and a screen, Australia's ABC News reported. The US-supplied NASAM missile system, sent to Ukraine last winter, costs around $500,000 to fire. According to ABC, the cost of shooting down a drone with it is estimated to be between $100 and $1,000.

Persons: —, Charlotte Capper, Jake Epstein, That's, Australia Vasyl Myroshnychenko Organizations: Service, Optic Systems, ABC News, ABC, EOS, Australian Defense Magazine Locations: Australian, Ukraine, Russia, Australia

☆ Russia is getting hundreds of volunteers to protect its vulnerable planes from attacks, likely because it lacks enough trained security teams, intel says
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-11 | by ( Jake Epstein | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

A recent drone attack on a Russian airbase left several military aircraft damaged and destroyed. A satellite image shows the air base in Pskov, after what Kyiv confirmed to have been a Ukrainian drone attack, in Russia, August 31, 2023. AdvertisementAdvertisementThe new measures to protect its bases underscore major deficiencies in Russia's domestic security and air-defense network. TELEGRAM / MIKHAIL VEDERNIKOV/via REUTERSAugust alone saw over two dozen drone attacks on Russian territory. AdvertisementAdvertisementAn Ilyushin Il-76 Strategic airlifter, several of which were damaged in the drone attack.

Persons: Kyrylo Budanov, they'll, MIKHAIL VEDERNIKOV, it's, Sefa, Biden Organizations: Western intel, Service, Kyiv, Planet Labs, Handout, REUTERS, quadcopter, Anadolu Agency, Getty Images, NATO, Pentagon Locations: Russian, Russia, Moscow, Western, Wall, Silicon, Pskov, Estonia, Ukraine, Soviet, Russia's, Ukrainian, Ukraine Britain's, Crimea

☆ Ukraine says its soldiers took out a Russian helicopter with artillery fire
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-30 | by ( Mia Jankowicz | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

A Ukrainian soldier explained how his unit took out a Russian attack helicopter using a howitzer. According to the report, which Insider was unable to independently verify, the unorthodox attack took out a Russian Mi-24 helicopter. Even hitting a landed helicopter in a live battle would be tough with artillery, given that they tend not to stay still for long. —Defense of Ukraine (@DefenceU) August 29, 2023Stanislav's unit was using a M-109 Howitzer, a self-propelled artillery unit whose usual target, he explained, is enemy soldiers, tanks, artillery, or other vehicles on the ground. According to the open-source weapons-tracking website Oryx, Russia has lost just five Mi-24 helicopters since the start of the full-scale invasion, although it has not listed this particular instance.

Persons: Stanislav Organizations: Service, Ukraine's Ministry of Defense, 14th Mechanized Brigade, — Locations: Ukrainian, Wall, Silicon, Russian, Ukraine, Russia

☆ A Backfire bomber being blown apart deep inside Russia's territory is the latest in a string of glaring failures to protect its strategic bases
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-23 | by ( Chris Panella | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Last weekend, an apparent drone strike destroyed a prized Russian Tu-22M3 Backfire bomber. The attack occurred far from the front lines of the war and may have been launched from inside Russia. The strike on a vulnerable Tupolev Tu-22M3 Backfire bomber is part of a growing list of Russian failures to protect its critical bases and vital aerial assets. If that's the case, it may speak to both Ukraine's expanding ability to threaten domestic Russian air bases and Russia's inability to protect them. AdvertisementAdvertisementIn the aftermath of the Tu-22M3 attack, there's a question of how Russia might adapt.

Persons: — Engels, Samuel Bendett, they're, Bendett, ALEXANDER NEMENOV, It's, Ukraine Anton Gerashchenko Organizations: Service, Russian Defense Ministry, Aviation, Center for Naval Analyses, Russia, Russian Aerospace Forces, NATO, Russian Defence Ministry, Kremlin, Nazi, Getty, Internal Affairs, Mobility Artillery, Systems Locations: Russian, Russia, Wall, Silicon, Ukraine, St . Petersburg, Saratov, Ryazan, Moscow, Novgorod Oblast, Russia's, Nazi Germany, AFP, Murmansk, Finland

☆ Ukrainian strikes reportedly hit bases in Russia housing supersonic warplanes
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-22 | by ( Ivana Kottasová Tim Lister Svitlana Vlasova Mariya Knight Gianluca Mezzofiore Eve Brennan Olga Voitovych Sarah El Sirgany | Ivana Kottasová | Tim Lister | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

CNN —Ukrainian forces appear to have stepped up their efforts to weaken Russian air superiority in the war by attacking bases that house supersonic warplanes deep inside Russian territory. Over the weekend, Russia’s defense ministry said another Ukrainian drone hit the Soltsy military airfield in the Novgorod region, also hundreds of kilometers north of Ukraine. The Shaykovka military air base operates Tupolev Tu-22M3 supersonic long-range bombers that have been used by Russia to strike targets in Ukraine since the start of its full-scale invasion last year. Degrading moraleThe attack on Monday was the second strike against a Russian air base housing powerful hardware in just three days. Ukrainian media reported that attacks on Russian bases over the past few days have destroyed several aircraft including two bombers, citing unnamed Ukrainian defense intelligence officials.

Persons: Shaykovka, Andriy Yusov, Yusov, Tupolev, YURI KADOBNOV, Baza –, –, ” Mash, Vladislav Shapsha, ” Organizations: CNN, Ukrainian, Kyiv, Tupolev, Ukraine’s Defense Intelligence, Main Directorate of Intelligence, Ukraine’s Defense Ministry, Getty, Russian Telegram, Russia’s Defense, Planet Labs, for, Russian Ministry of Defense Locations: Ukrainian, Novgorod, Ukraine, Netherlands, Denmark, Russia, Russia’s Kaluga, AFP, Russian, Kirov, Soltsy, Washington

Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine CNN —In a deserted shell of a building, a Ukrainian drone pilot blocks off his surroundings and focuses solely on the controller in his hands. During the day, the drone unit spent hours scoping out possible night-time launch sites for their mission, as well as figuring out the exact coordinates of their target. Frederik Pleitgen/CNNThey hide their vehicles and proceed a few hundreds of meters on foot, while Ukrainian and Russian forces trade artillery salvos. A successful hitAs the Ukrainian drone approaches its Russian target, the mission enters its most critical phase. Still, the men say, their job is not done just yet, not while Russian forces continue to occupy Ukraine.

Persons: ‘, ’ ”, –, ” Bankir, “, Marat, Frederik Pleitgen, they’re, ”, Vladimir Sladkov, Vladimir Rogov, they’ll, Ukraine’s SBU, ” Marat, “ It’s, it’s Organizations: Ukraine CNN —, Security Service, country’s Patrol Police, CNN, Patrol Police, coy, Bradley, Russian, “ Team Locations: Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine, Ukrainian, Kherson, Russian, United States

☆ Walmart-backed DroneUp is cutting jobs as drone delivery market struggles
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-16 | by ( Annie Palmer | In Annierpalmer | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

DroneUp, a Walmart -backed startup competing alongside Amazon and others in the nascent drone delivery market, is cutting jobs across the company, CNBC has learned. DroneUp is one of several startups racing to make drone delivery a reality. UPS , Amazon and Alphabet 's Wing unit are also in various stages of developing their own drone delivery services. Attempts at scaling commercial drone delivery in the U.S. have been slow moving, largely due to technical challenges and a lengthy regulatory approval process with the Federal Aviation Administration. The economic downturn has also proven a setback for some drone delivery operators.

☆ Details in the drone incident the Kremlin says aimed to assassinate Putin 'don't quite add up.' Experts have 3 theories on what happened.
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-03 | by ( Mia Jankowicz | Sophia Ankel | Ryan Pickrell | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +11 min

Russia claimed Wednesday that Ukraine tried to assassinate Putin with a drone attack at the Kremlin. James Patton Rogers, a military historian and adviser to NATO on drones and warfare, said that "there's a few things that don't quite add up in this situation." Its ability to fly comparatively low, and slowly, would potentially help it evade some radar, Patton Rogers said. Claiming that Ukraine tried to assassinate Putin would potentially "open up a new norm in the war," Patton Rogers said. Patton Rogers said he hasn't "seen any indication" that such groups have the capacity to use drones in their attacks.

☆ Ukraine-Russia war sees U.S. mull Patriot missile defense battery for Kyiv. It's not enough.
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-15 | by ( Pavel K. Baev | Pavel K. Baev Is A Research Professor At The Peace Research Institute Oslo | Prio | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +8 min

The feeble Russian response to Ukraine’s recent drone attacks suggests the West has room to maneuver. The drone attacks also point to how the West can do more to turn the tide of war in Ukraine’s favor. But the Patriot deployment would take months even in the best circumstances, and the war gives no respite. And the feeble Russian response to Ukraine’s recent drone attacks suggests the West has room to maneuver. A U.S. Army Patriot Missile System operates at a joint exercise with NATO allied and partner forces, in Zadar, Croatia, on May 17, 2021.

☆ Ancient anti-aircraft guns are taking on a new mission amid Russia's war in Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-23 | by ( Michael Peck | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Russia and Ukraine have both turned to older anti-aircraft guns to bolster their air defenses. During World War II, half of the Allied bombers shot down over Germany may have victims of "flak" — a shortened version of a German word for 1930s-era anti-aircraft guns. SERGEY BOBOK/AFP via Getty ImagesRussia and Ukraine are both using Soviet-made S-60 anti-aircraft guns that date to the 1940s. Older anti-aircraft guns also offer a political advantage. Even as more sophisticated anti-aircraft weapons have been deployed, anti-aircraft guns have remained useful, albeit in more limited roles.

☆ Russian soldiers in Kharkiv region couldn’t immediately launch drones during Ukrainian counter-offensive because of a software installation
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-31 | by ( Azmi Haroun | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

The drones are frequently used by Russia as they are low-cost, short-distance, rechargeable drones meant to launch small weapons. They're also used in part to offset the high costs of explosive, hi-tech surveillance drones like the Iranian kamikaze drones, according to the New York Times. According to Reuters, the next day, the forces received four Mavic-3 quadcopter drones, but they couldn't be used immediately as needed. The soldiers, while under missile fire, had to install new software for the drones, and then train 15 soldiers on how to use them. Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that within days of the September counteroffensive, Ukraine regained over 1,158 square miles of territory from Russian forces.

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