Fighter and transport aircraft, armored vehicles, unmanned aerial vehicles, precision-guided munitions, light weapons and other developments in the domestic defense industry are exhibited at the Russian stands of the World Defense Fair.
Compared with the World Defense Expo 2022, the scale of the Russian exhibition has doubled. In Riyadh, there is great interest in Russian weapons and military equipment, which have proven their high tactical and technical characteristics in combat operations and show tangible superiority over competitors’ products.
“Today, leading military analysts see the main reasons for changes in the forms and methods of using the armed forces in modern military conflicts in the appearance on the battlefields of a large number of unmanned systems solving a wide range of tasks.
Many experts think that UAVs using artificial intelligence are perhaps the main tool for achieving goals in future wars. “For these reasons, unmanned systems have an important place in the exhibition at the World Defense Show,” he said.
— Editor-in-chief of Unmanned Aviation magazine Denis Fedutinov told socialbites.ca.
Russia presented both unmanned aerial vehicles and the means to combat them in Riyadh.
As for anti-aircraft missile systems and complexes, models of medium-range air defense combat vehicles from the S-350E Vityaz anti-aircraft missile system (SAM) and Viking anti-aircraft missile system (SAM) are demonstrated in the capital Saudi Arabia.
Short-range air defense systems are represented by models of combat vehicles of the Tor family of air defense systems (Tor-E2, Tor-M2K, Tor-M2KM) in stationary and mobile versions, that is, on both tracked and wheeled chassis.
Russia is demonstrating for the first time in Saudi Arabia its newest automated system for suppressing drones and radio tracking equipment capable of detecting the drone operator. The Serp-VS6 anti-UAV system is capable of protecting objects from drones, including fast-flying FPV (First Person View), as well as a swarm of drones.
weapons of the future
In this context, it is quite instructive to take a closer look at which areas of development of unmanned vehicles and the means to combat them are focused on by the world’s leading developers. For example, in the United States there is a sharp intensification of work on the creation of unmanned aerial vehicles that work together with manned aircraft.
The US Air Force is already planning a series of UAV test flights this year aimed at testing relevant technologies.
“Here we are talking about the use of interactive drones, also called unmanned “loyal wingmen”. They are expected to be used together with modern and promising combat aircraft such as F-35 aircraft and the future Next Generation Air Domination air platform, Fedutinov said.
According to US experts, unmanned “loyal wingmen” operating in cooperation with manned aircraft will be able to perform a variety of tasks, such as conducting reconnaissance, hitting various targets (land, sea and air), suppressing enemy radio signals or acting as decoys.
In this context, the US Air Force is working on three areas of development of unmanned “loyal wingmen”: developing the platforms themselves, creating the architecture of the control system for these UAVs and figuring out how to organize and train this system.
The use of unmanned “loyal wingmen” in the MSA Air Force appears to be quite extensive. Previously, the estimated number of promising devices was 1000 units. However, according to US Air Force experts, the total number is likely to be even higher.
However, in order for such equipment to be purchased in large quantities, the devices must be relatively inexpensive. Therefore, most likely, the price of such UAVs will be between a quarter and a third of the cost of the F-35 fighter jet, that is, in the range of 20 to 27 million dollars per unit.
Possible platforms
The US Air Force is considering a number of aircraft from various development companies as a possible “loyal wingman” platform. One of these is the XQ-58 Valkyrie unmanned aerial vehicle, developed by the American company Kratos Defense & Security Solutions specifically to escort manned aircraft.
“Valkyrie” can fly at speeds of up to 1050 km/h, and the cruising speed of the device is 882 km/h. The service ceiling of the XQ-58 reaches 13.7 km, and the flight range of the UAV should be at least 5550 km.
The weapons of the drone, which can weigh up to 270 kg, are located in the internal compartments. Potentially the same number could also be placed on external fixed points. JDAM and GBU-39 bombs can be used as weapons of destruction.
There are multiple candidates for the “loyal wingman” role in the U.S. Air Force. In addition to the Kratos company, Boeing, General Atomics and Northrop Grumman (later separated from the development companies) were also initially involved in the work on this topic.
Boeing introduces the Boeing MQ-28 Ghost Bat. Its shape is similar to the Valkyrie UAV, but the engine air intakes are located on the sides of the fuselage. Although the specifications of the device have not been officially announced, it can be assumed that it is slightly heavier than the Valkyrie.
General Atomics is using (possibly temporary) the Predator C (Avenger) UAV as a platform, which has not previously received support from customers. This is the heaviest device in the current shortlist. The maximum take-off weight reaches 8255 kg.
Why “loyal followers”?
The inclusion of autonomous interactive UAVs in the combat force is one of the main priorities of the US Air Force, as the Pentagon plans to move combat aviation to a qualitatively different level, as well as update the combat fleet and radically change its composition.
Why is now the United States intensifying work on an issue that does not promise immediate returns, that is, the Air Force is investing entirely in promising issues?
There is reason to believe that recent military conflicts have clearly demonstrated the fragility of the aviation systems used. Despite their possible numerical superiority, it became clear that they could not guarantee success in the wars of the future.
“This forced the US Air Force to once again pay attention to the study of possible alternative approaches that could change the rules of the game in the future, figuratively speaking,” believes Denis Fedutinov.
One option is to implement the concept of unmanned “loyal wingmen”. It is expected that the development of these technologies will enable serious advantages against the enemy in future military conflicts. Therefore, China, India, Turkey and Australia are currently conducting similar studies.
What about in Russia?
“The idea of creating Russian “interactive” UAVs was proposed several years ago by designer Nikolai Dolzhenkov, one of the leading Russian experts in the field of unmanned aircraft.
He also created a list of tasks required to implement this concept. Developments abroad, including the launch of similar projects in China, India and Turkey, once again confirm the accuracy of such technical visionary thinking.
“Unfortunately, the course of events related to the SVO forced the Russian military department to significantly reconsider the list of priorities in terms of the development of weapons and military equipment, focusing on what is needed” here and now “,” Fedutinov said. said.
However, for Russia, issues of ensuring state security are not limited to current short-term tasks. The dynamics of changes in the geopolitical and military-political situation, the emergence of new threats emphasize the importance of launching our own projects in terms of creating UAVs that interact exclusively with manned aircraft.
Therefore, according to Fedutinov, there is no need to postpone creating your own such systems for a long time. Otherwise, there is a risk of missing the opportunity to change the balance of power in our favor and giving our opponents the opportunity to do the opposite.