Officials in the U.S. Army will use their killer drones and takes defenses down. Enemy air defenses are thicker than ever, and even F-35 would be surprised.
One of the hallmarks of modern ground combat is sending Predator drones as expendable assets as air defense busters. It saves the lives of A-10 and even expensive 5th generation planes on costly attack runs if shot down.
The content of the request from the Army sensor program manager stresses the need to prevent the dangers of getting shot down in a war that is with an equally advanced foe. One thing these drones need is the ability to survive missions without getting shot down, reported Forbes.
It is equipped with 200 MQ-1C Gray Eagle drones operated by intelligence companies in army combat divisions. The prop-driven drone has small radar plus day and night cameras that recon the battlefield day or night, but it changes when defenses are thicker.
Gray Eagle is just one of the types of drones made by California drone-maker General Atomics, who manufactures the Predator drone (killed an Iranian general). These drones cannot be used against advanced opponents but are upgradable too. Despite stealth or speed, the units can still fight but in a limited role. This deficiency will have a fix as per Army plans.
China is a more significant threat than Russia, but both are taken into account with the Gray Eagle flown into the battle. Gray Eagle will be adapted to survive aerial encounters and support troops. There will be systems mounted on it then.
Also read: Unmanned Aerial Vehicles Fill in Gaps as Force Multipliers Not Replacements
Modern upgrades will be the new Aerial Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (AISR), Air-Launched Effects (ALE), Joint All-Domain Operations (JADO), against Integrated Air-Defense Systems (IADS) systems.
The machine will use robust sensors and munitions to find enemy radars and surface-to-air missiles and anti-aircraft guns, then attack from a standard-issue drone.
How the improved drones will attack targets
The updated Gray Eagle will fly rings around the target from a distance and adjust to the against Integrated Air-Defense Systems (IADS) systems or anything that can shoot down an aircraft-keeping a distance of 80 kilometers away.
It is the maximum distance that keeps weapons pointed and locked. Only a few radars and missiles can reach it. Radars and cameras of the drones have this limit to be effective at 80 kilometers maximum. Keeping the drone away any farther or too close will not be optimized its effect on the battlefield.
Innovation comes with mini-drones stores in the Gray Eagle call Air-Launched Effects (ALE) to close in the devastation of targets. These smaller drones are harder to hit with smaller warheads exploding on impact or locator beacon for other missiles to hit enemy targets.
Modern radars will paint the target and spot it for others to see in a connected battle network. The data will be relayed to army artillery to fire on. The drone will be part of a web of weapon systems connected for battle.
Some call it over the top as Army plan in such detail, said Stephen Trimble, the Aviation Week editor. The U.S. Army and their killer drones should have been under wraps, she said.
Related article: India Gets U.S. Hunter Drones to Use Against Chinese Troops
