The US can shoot down UAVs without expensive missiles.

American news outlets noted that the US military used a combination of two MADIS armored vehicles, one equipped with advanced radar and the other with the Stinger anti-aircraft missile system. They also had machine guns and electronic warfare systems.

"The idea behind Project MADIS is to provide ground commanders with a range of options from guns to missiles or electronic warfare so they can choose the best way to protect troops and other assets from drones without incurring excessive costs," the publication stated.

The U.S. Marine Corps stated that one of the most useful features of the MADIS system is its ability to fire specialized 30mm rounds with a proximity fuse, detonating the warhead as the target approaches.

Steven Sawyer, a former munitions technician at NATO's Procurement and Supply Agency, noted that 30mm rounds are generally less accurate than missiles, but their use can be cheaper.

According to him, even if it took five of these missiles to destroy a UAV, the cost would be around $11,000, while Stinger missiles cost about $430,000 each and Coyote unmanned interceptor aircraft used in combat in the Middle East cost between $100,000 and $125,000 each.

According to the Wall Street Journal, before the US announced MADIS, the advanced Merops anti-UAV weapon system had already been deployed to the Middle East to counter attacks from Iranian drones.

This system will use interceptor UAVs costing $15,000 to neutralize adversary UAVs. This gives the U.S. and its allies an additional cost-effective option for countering UAVs, avoiding the need for expensive anti-aircraft missiles that destroy much cheaper targets.

The entire Merops complex will include an interceptor UAV called the Surveyor, a ground control station, and launch platforms, with a crew of four. The Surveyor UAV is propeller-driven, capable of reaching speeds of 280 km/h, and is used to dive and destroy enemy UAVs. It can match the speed of some Iranian UAVs such as the Shahed-136, which flies at around 185 km/h.

Nevertheless, with advanced Shahed models using jet engines, capable of reaching speeds of up to 370 km/h, interception would be a challenge for the Surveyor. In the event of a failed attack, the Surveyor UAV is equipped with a parachute for landing, which the pilot can recover and redeploy.

A U.S. defense official revealed that the deployment of Merops in Ukraine will provide useful data for the U.S. to operate the system in the Middle East. To date, Merops has been recorded as having intercepted more than 1,000 UAVs.

The Merops system will be delivered directly by Perennial Autonomy (USA) to various locations in the Middle East, including areas without a US military presence.

The Wall Street Journal revealed that Pentagon officials acknowledge that despite possessing a highly advanced interception system, intercepting Iranian drone strikes remains a difficult task.

Source: https://giaoducthoidai.vn/my-ha-guc-uav-khong-can-ten-lua-dat-tien-post779981.html