Humans have always searched for ways to improve their capabilities and gain an edge on the battlefield. Over time, spears became guns, and horses were traded for tanks. In the 20th century, humans looked up to the skies, and a new dimension to battle was introduced in the form of airplanes. Looking back, it’s no surprise that they would eventually trade aircraft for unmanned drones.
Unmanned aerial systems (UAS), commonly referred to as drones, surprisingly predate fighter jets. Introduced in the 19th century as ‘balloons - weaponized with fire’, they were rudimentary but effective.
Militaries began developing systems similar to modern UASs, mostly for surveillance, after World War II, and the earliest deployment of drones as we know it, including those fitted with munitions, came in the form of Reaper drones, produced by General Atomics and in service from 1994.
Since then, most modern militaries have been equipped with drones, whether for surveillance or combat, with remote-controlled systems playing a central role in many 21st-century conflicts.
However, it was only recently that drones were deemed effective enough to be dubbed the “future” of warfare by tech giants.
Future of warfare
Since Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine, drones of all sizes have played an enormous role in the course of the Russia-Ukraine War. How they work is simple; an operator flies a cheap drone at a target, usually fitted with an explosive and a camera.
Drones allow maneuvers against the enemy without risking over-the-top expensive equipment or the lives of soldiers - and are extremely effective. Still, because the technology is relatively recent, innovative growth has exploded over the past few years, quickly shifting the focus of defense technology.
As drone technology evolves, so do anti-drone measures. Because of their size and relatively low altitude, traditional systems struggle to identify and neutralize drones, which can lead to disastrous outcomes; a single drone that bypasses defenses can cause immense damage.
Countering deadly drones
At their core, most counter-UAS (c-UAS) systems follow a simple process: detection (using radio-frequency sensors, radar, or cameras), identification (classifying whether the object is a friendly or hostile drone), and mitigation, usually via jamming, signal takeover, or even interception. This structure explains why companies focus so heavily on both RF detection and powerful jamming capabilities.
One weakness of drones is the constant communication required between the operator and the drone itself. If the signal is disrupted, the drone can’t operate at all, making drone jammers a lucrative alternative to attempting to shoot down a drone, something that is hard to do accurately.
Several dozen c-UAS companies, both Israeli and international, took part in the recent UVID Drone conference in Tel Aviv last week, highlighting their technology.
Based in Kfar Saba, MCTECH brings a unique way of dealing with drones to the table.
Ido Bar-Oz, CMO of MCTECH, told Defense & Tech by The Jerusalem Post that launching technology that can both identify a drone and its operator, as well as forcing the drone to crash, is what makes the Israeli company unique.
MCTECH’s systems include a manpack, designed to be carried by soldiers, and, according to the company, can “instantaneously and simultaneously detect over thousands of threats” from the air, identifying frequencies from 20-6000 MHz.
Parazero’s approach
Not all counter-UAS solutions rely solely on detection and jamming, as Parazero’s approach to drone interception demonstrates. While ideally, drones are detected before impact, there are times when doing so is hard or impossible. For example, soldiers fighting in the Russia-Ukraine War often face the danger of being ambushed by a drone in an open field, leaving them no choice but to surrender or die.
Established in Beersheba in 2014, Parazero offers an unprecedented solution to this problem, namely, shooting a net at the incoming drone. The concept is simple; the user carries a device roughly the size of a large flashlight and, with the click of a button, ejects a five-by-five-meter net capable of taking down an incoming drone.
The device consists of a body and a “cartridge,” which can be replaced depending on the type and size of net needed, and can also be easily carried in a belt.
The company says that its low cost per interception, combined with its non-explosive nature, makes it perfect as a ”comprehensive solution for strategic military bases, critical infrastructure, government buildings, VIP Protection, and infantry soldiers.”
Looking ahead, militaries anticipate an era of fully autonomous drone swarms, forcing companies to explore AI-driven countermeasures capable of detecting and neutralizing multiple targets at once.
Analysts warn that future battlefields could be defined by drone-on-drone combat, jamming networks, and AI threat assessment, a sign that the drone arms race is only accelerating.