Independence Day: DRDO's anti-drone tech guarded Modi at Red Fort
What's the story
As Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed the nation on the occasion of India's 74th Independence Day, a sophisticated military tech developed by the Defense Research and Development Organization (DRDO) formed a part of his security. It guarded the vicinity of the Red Fort with weapons to detect rogue micro drones and take them out instantly. Here is all you need to know about it.
Technology
System to jam and destroy drones with lasers
Stationed at a vantage point facing Red Fort, DRDO's anti-drone solution scouted for potentially rogue unmanned aerial vehicles. According to reports, it carried two main systems to take out potential targets: a jammer capable of breaking a drone's command and control link to make it unresponsive and a Direct Energy Weapon that could fire an invisible beam of laser to fry its electronics mid-air.
Range
Attack range up to 3 kilometers
The jammer of the system can disable a micro drone flying up to 3 kilometers away, while the laser weapon could damage electronics of a UAV flying 1 to 2.5 kilometers away, DRDO officials told ANI. They added that the range of laser depends on the wattage of DEW being used, without specifying the power of the system deployed at Red Fort.
Benefit
Could be effective in controlling drone activity
The DRDO officials emphasized that their laser-equipped anti-drone system could be used to counter rogue UAV activity in northern and western parts of India. Notably, laser weapons are seen as the latest advancement in military tech, something that could neutralize an increasing number of potential threats, including UAVs, armed boats, and adversary intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance systems.
Speed
Attack at the speed of light
The biggest advantage of laser weapons is the element of speed. Whether deployed on a drone or warship, the beams emitted by DEWs come out as concentrated photons, which travel at the speed of light or, you can say, 50,000 times the speed of an Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (ICBM). It cannot be matched by any other weapon, at least not today.