Photo: ABC News.
The device is called the Slinger and is designed to destroy drones at a price that countries like Ukraine can afford.
“We’ve seen the drone threat become more and more significant in Ukraine,” said Matt Jones of Electro Optic Systems (EOS). “Typically, the systems that big countries use to counter them are too expensive compared to drones that cost $10,000 or even $1,000.”
Drones have played a major role in the war in Ukraine. Photo: ABC News.
The war in Ukraine has changed warfare forever. Drones play a huge role on the front lines. There are estimates that thousands of drones are launched there every day.
“The ability to detect, identify and engage those targets rapidly is a game-changer,” said retired Australian Major General Mick Ryan. “It has changed military formations, and it will change the doctrine and equipment of all nations.”
“The problem is cost”
In a world of multimillion-dollar systems, drones are a great equalizer. The Iranian Shahed models that Russia uses to attack Ukrainian tanks and cities cost just $31,000. Some drones cost even less.
Photo: Vyacheslav Madiyevskyy/Reuters.
“Until recently, we had to use very expensive missiles to take them out,” Mr. Ryan said. “And if you need to use a $100,000 to $200,000 missile to shoot them down, most countries can’t afford that.”
The Slinger system uses sophisticated technology to achieve a goal that would otherwise be more crude. In Canberra, EOS engineer Charlotte Capper uses a controller to control the target tracking system via an external display.
“I just make sure the device is tracking the target and ready to attack. When we receive the signal, we can immediately shoot down the target,” she said.
“They are very easy to get used to. Users don't need to know too much about technology.”
Last month, Ukraine's ambassador to Australia Vasyl Myroshnychenko witnessed firsthand how the Slinger system destroys drones at a fraction of the cost of conventional methods.
“Sometimes missiles cost millions of dollars,” he said. “And we use them to shoot down $20,000 planes. The problem is the cost. Nobody knows where they are going to be aimed and what they are going to destroy.”
Slinger costs less than $1.55 million per unit. The system is aimed at destroying drones at a cost of $155 to $1,550 per target.
Drone carrying explosives. Photo: Reuters.
“Ukrainian cities are bombed by drones every day, and we have been dealing with them for the past year and a half. The Slinger system provides a unique ability to target moving targets, allowing us to intercept drones.”
Slinger shipped to Ukraine
In Queanbeyan and the Australian Capital Territory (ACT), EOS assembles the cameras, lasers and stabilisers that keep the target tracking system running smoothly. 85% of the components are sourced in Australia.
Photo: Norman Hermant/ABC News
The company’s defense products tie back to its aerospace roots, with EOS once playing a role in identifying and tracking objects as small as a coin orbiting the Earth 36,000 kilometers above the ground.
This technology can be directly applied to tracking small, fast-moving objects such as drones.
“Here we are using the same tracking system and stabilization algorithms that we use to track objects in space,” said Mr. Jones.
Ten Slinger systems are being assembled at ACT and are expected to be delivered to Ukraine before the end of the year as part of a US government military aid package.
A Department of Defense spokesman said the Australian government was committed to fulfilling its current contribution to Ukraine, but had no plans to include the Slinger systems in Australia's $710 million military aid package to Ukraine.
Mr. Ryan believes that Ukraine needs every anti-drone system to cope with the new realities of modern warfare.
“This is a new explosion in the use of drones in warfare. This is the most intense period of innovation and adaptation we have ever seen. It may not be over yet.”
Nguyen Quang Minh (according to ABC News)
Source
Comment (0)