As an emerging air combat force, drones can not only provide sustained intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance capabilities, but also provide precise and timely firepower support. With zero casualties, non-contact, and long-range combat capabilities, they are increasingly valued by more and more countries. Especially, driven by military demands and technological advancements, the performance and scale of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) are rapidly developing, and their battlefield applications are becoming increasingly widespread. Their combat capabilities and contributions are also increasing, becoming a new hotspot in military competition.
Seize the initiative, plan and drive development
The outcome of military competition largely depends on the competition of strategic planning. Scientific strategic planning can clarify strategic goals, determine overall layout, choose strategic paths, deploy strategic tasks, and allocate strategic resources, which helps to seize the opportunity to win. Since 2000, the US Department of Defense has released 8 "Comprehensive Roadmaps for Unmanned Systems" as the overall strategic guidance for the US military's unmanned systems, and the various branches of the US military have continuously iterated and released relevant plans. According to the "Balance of Forces 2022" released by the Institute for Strategic and International Studies in the UK, the US military has equipped a total of 1093 large and medium-sized unmanned aerial vehicles weighing over 20 kilograms. In addition, the US military has over 10000 micro unmanned aerial vehicles weighing less than 20 kilograms.
In recent years, Russia has successively issued planning documents such as the "2018-2027 National Weapon Equipment Development Outline", the "Russian Military Drone Development Plan Outline", and the "Concept for the Use of Drone Systems by the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation before 2025", comprehensively laying out the development of drone equipment and military construction. According to a report published on the Russian military commentary website in 2021, the Russian military has established about 70 drone companies/squads, equipped with more than 20 types of drones such as "Sea Eagle-10", "Aileron-3", "Pomegranate", "Super Speed Particle", "Outpost", "Orion", etc., with a total of over 2000 drones. According to the plan, the proportion of unmanned combat systems in the Russian military equipment system will exceed 30% by 2025.
Israel will develop drones as the main leverage to gain asymmetric combat advantages. Under the guidance of the Israeli Ministry of Defense's "Unmanned Systems Plan by 2025" and other initiatives, over 50 domestic drone companies have developed more than 170 types of drones, with the spectrum becoming increasingly sophisticated. Israel has long held the position of the world's largest exporter of drones, with export targets including the United States, Russia, France, and others. Azerbaijan's introduction of various types of drones such as Hermes, Heron, and Halop from Israel helped the Afghan military gain a battlefield advantage in the 2020 Nagorno Karabakh conflict.
Intelligent collaboration, technology promotes development
In terms of drone technology, world military powers generally attach great importance to the development and deep integration of unmanned autonomous systems and artificial intelligence technology, and promote the improvement of drone swarms and manned unmanned collaborative combat capabilities.
On the basis of autonomous flight, unmanned aerial vehicles can form intelligent formations and cooperate with manned fighter jets to improve overall combat effectiveness. The S-70 "Hunter" heavy unmanned aerial vehicle developed by the Sukhoi Design Bureau of Russia is planned to be deployed to the Russian military in 2024. It can independently carry out tasks such as air superiority and air defense suppression, and can also be used as an unmanned wingman in conjunction with the Su-57 fighter jet. The US Air Force's "Skyburger Man" project is developing an autonomous control system based on artificial intelligence algorithms, enabling drones to autonomously perform complex combat tasks and achieve coordinated operations with manned vehicles. The US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency and other institutions have also proposed concepts such as air launched drones, leading the continuous innovation of the "loyal wingman" combat mode. The unmanned wingman being developed by the UK will be able to operate in conjunction with the Typhoon fighter jet, F-35 fighter jet, and the next generation Storm fighter jet.
The drone swarm has the characteristics of distribution, miniaturization, and low cost, which can greatly improve the comprehensive combat capability and battlefield survival ability of the combat system. The "Lightning" swarm unmanned aerial vehicle being developed by the Russian Aerospace Forces has evolved into reconnaissance, strike, and electronic warfare models, which can be mounted on platforms such as transport planes, fighter jets, and large unmanned aerial vehicles. The deployment method is flexible, and each Su-57 fighter jet can carry 8 "Lightning" unmanned aerial vehicles. The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) of the United States completed its first aerial recovery test of the "Pokemon" drone in 2021, taking a crucial step towards achieving the resilience and flexible combat capabilities of swarm drones; The "Offensive Swarm Enabling Tactics" has completed 6 field tests and will be further tested for its combat capabilities in the 2022 US Army Expeditionary Warrior Experiment. In the large-scale demonstration and verification of the UK's "Bee Colony Drone Combat Efficiency Enhancement" project, three operators achieved beyond visual range control of five different types, sizes, and combat capabilities of fixed wing drone swarms. The drone swarm carried six different types of mission payloads and completed more than 220 flight missions. Germany is developing a tactical level artificial intelligence decision-making system called "Ghost Trick" for drone swarms.
Artificial intelligence technology is also widely used in various types of unmanned aerial vehicles such as unmanned transport aircraft, unmanned refueling aircraft, and unmanned electronic warfare aircraft to carry out increasingly complex and diverse tasks.
Practice and battle simultaneously, no one outshines the battlefield with intelligence
To verify relevant concepts, test the combat effectiveness of drones and related tactical tactics, relevant countries have conducted extensive exploration through exercises and practical training.
In July 2021, Israel, together with the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Italy, and Germany, conducted a cross-border drone military exercise codenamed "Blue Guardian". This is the first joint military exercise in the world that uses drones as the main combat equipment, practicing multiple subjects such as providing support, reconnaissance, intelligence, and cooperation between air forces of various countries for ground forces. During the "West-2021" strategic exercise, the Russian military used laser emitters on the "Orion" and "Outpost" unmanned aerial vehicles to accurately guide two types of guided shells towards targets for strikes. The Royal Marine Corps conducted an experiment called 'Autonomous Propulsion Force 4.0' in July 2021. Six medium heavyweight transport drones, as an autonomously controlled fleet, took off from the "Mount Bay" dock landing ship to provide ammunition, plasma, and other supplies to the assault team. The fleet also carried out reconnaissance missions, providing intelligence for surprise operations against enemy targets. This is the first time that the British Armed Forces have used drone swarms at sea and in the air.
Under the guidance of new combat concepts such as "joint global operations," "mosaic warfare," and "distributed operations," the United States actively conducts drone exercises and drills. In April 2021, the US Navy conducted the "Unmanned Integrated Operations Problem-21" exercise, using a total of 29 unmanned systems including unmanned surface vessels, MQ-8B shipborne unmanned reconnaissance helicopters, MQ-9A integrated reconnaissance unmanned aerial vehicles, and "Super Bee" to explore for the first time the large-scale cross domain collaborative combat capability between unmanned aerial vehicles and other manned/unmanned heterogeneous platforms. The US Air Force conducted its first autonomous formation flight test of unmanned aerial vehicles during the "Orange Flag 2021-3" exercise, using UTAP-22 "Shark" unmanned aerial vehicles and MQ-20 "Avenger" unmanned aerial vehicles to conduct multiple flight tests on the most critical "autonomous control system" of the "Sky Borg" project.
The United States was the first country to use drones on the battlefield and also the country with the most extensive experience in drone use. From the debut of unmanned reconnaissance aircraft on the battlefield in the Vietnam War to the emergence of a large number of drones as the main force of reconnaissance and surveillance in the Kosovo War; From the first implementation of precise ground strikes in the Afghanistan War to widespread and comprehensive use in the Iraq War, the United States has continuously expanded the application areas of drones. In the May 2021 Israeli Palestinian conflict, the Israeli military used a swarm of micro multi rotor drones guided by artificial intelligence systems for the first time, destroying dozens of targets near the border, resulting in the failure of Hamas' infiltration operations, anti tank missile ambushes, and sniper tactics. Israel also became the first country to integrate artificial intelligence technology to command drone swarms in combat. The Israeli military plans to establish a company equipped with drone swarms, precision weapons, and comprehensive electronic information systems in each brigade, enabling them to independently and quickly carry out search, positioning, target assessment, and precision strike missions in complex areas.
