Good summary on the impact of drone warfare and the new arms race in innovation in this area. Key question I have is whether the defencetech startups / rapid innovators in the West have sufficient financing options to allow us to remain competitive… most funding goes to the primes and the usual supporters of rapid innovators - VC / start up funds - tend to shy away from defence sector investments. Interested in thoughts and whether dual-use product development could be more supportable… #defence #defencetech #defense #defensetech #drone
A very interesting article from the Modern War Institute at West Point discussing drone warfare and innovation; link in comments. TLDR - a summary of what I consider the three most significant takeaway points. 1. The uncrewed and counter uncrewed systems #innovation cycle is accelerating and shaping present and future conflicts. As militaries develop new #drone technologies, adversaries respond with countermeasures, leading to counter-countermeasures in a continuous cycle of competitive innovation. This rapid evolution is a time sensitive advantage that is creating tactical successes in Ukraine but may also be translating into operational and strategic success, such as destruction of key ammo depots etc. This, in my view, illustrates the advantage of being the most effective adopter of emerging and disruptive technologies (EDT) - the adversary is not yet prepared to respond. 2. EDTs like directed-energy weapons and autonomous systems are transforming uncrewed system warfare and asymmetry between attacker and defender. High-energy lasers and microwaves show potential for drone defence, but have limitations that can be exploited when viewed through multi-domain #warfighting. Similarly, autonomous systems may overcome certain countermeasures but introduce new risks and vulnerabilities; know and unknown. Simply, systems are increasingly complex and therefore interdependent - ‘every link is a chink in the armour’. 3. To stay ahead in a competitive sense, we must focus on understanding adversary capabilities, accelerating development cycles, and quickly iterating for effectiveness in drone design; essentially #OODA loop advantage. This includes investing in intelligence, rapid prototyping and deployment, and considering modular designs for flexibility of employment. Placing an engineer as close as possible to an operational problem will accelerate development and improve the final product; there is a clear reason why defence tech companies what to be close to the Ukraine battle space! Image: Aerospace America