 Editor in Chief Bill   | 06 Sep 2023 6:33 a.m. PST |
The HAASTA is design to hunt low velocity flying Shahed-type drones and destroying the enemy target with an underbelly mounted 5.45mm machine gun. Breaking Defense: link |
| Griefbringer | 06 Sep 2023 7:02 a.m. PST |
That MG looks like it could also be used for strafing ground targets. |
| SBminisguy | 06 Sep 2023 8:54 a.m. PST |
First step -- ultimately you can see where this is going. You're going to have a controller drone this sized with stealth configuration and long loiter time directing swarms of multi-role drones. Mini Hunter Killer drones to counter small drones operating along the front lines, and larger defense drones to kill longer-range drones as they enter the AO, and so on. |
 Silurian  | 06 Sep 2023 10:06 a.m. PST |
Absolutely right.
There seem to be an endless number of (Ukrainian, though I'm guessing Russian too) videos out there showing the effects of suicide and bomb-dropping drones.
Are laser-guided missiles already obsolete? |
 McKinstry | 06 Sep 2023 1:52 p.m. PST |
They certainly have easy access to getting their UAV actual combat experience. I'm sure the Ukrainians will be happy to test drive the early models. |
| Striker | 06 Sep 2023 11:27 p.m. PST |
I wonder if anti-drone mounted guns would work in .22 cal? You don't need a big bullet just a bunch and .22 would be cheap and light. Maybe a .22 mini-gun? |
 Legion 4 | 07 Sep 2023 3:32 p.m. PST |
As always … Measure – Counter measure – Counter/counter measure. Drones killing Drones would be the "natural" evolution of this new weapon system on the battlefield. |
| Cuprum2 | 07 Sep 2023 8:20 p.m. PST |
In my opinion, shot or buckshot would be much more effective. |
| Cuprum2 | 08 Sep 2023 1:29 a.m. PST |
Already four years ago, the Russian concern Almaz-Antey was working on a "flying Kalashnikov assault rifle" (in fact, it is a Saiga, a version of the AK for firing shotgun cartridges). The balloon target was successfully destroyed. link |
 David Manley | 08 Sep 2023 1:57 a.m. PST |
I took part in a wargame in MOD a few years ago looking at UXVs in the maritime. Playing Red, I proposed a class of aerial hunter killer UAVs to take out Blue's offboard systems. This was a bit deliberate as I'd been suggesting such a thing should be on our developmental path for a while but nobody was listening. Blue got quite a shock when my HKs creamed their own UAVs and USVs, leaving the way clear for Red's ISTAR UXVs to rule the battlespace and call in long range fires whilst Blue's forces were blinded |
| Legion 4 | 08 Sep 2023 8:28 a.m. PST |
Drones' capabilities should not be underestimated. As we see in e.g. the Ukraine. They are weapons systems that certainly belong in the warfighters toolbox. Lots of them I'd think … |
