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New military tech creates fake fighter jet swarms

BriteStorm is Leonardo's revolutionary low Size, Weight & Power (SWAP) Stand-in-Jammer payload designed for easy integration onto UAVs and a wide range of launched effects. [Credit: Screenshot courtesy of Leonardo]

 

 

 

 

Impressive new military tech from aerospace, defense, and security contractor Leonardo (headquartered in the UK) equips drones with the power of creating fake fighter jet swarms to fool enemies. The company's U.S.-based division has a new laser weapon for defeating drones too.

The company's first new capability, called BriteStorm, will allow armed forces to operate deep within enemy territory -- even when that territory is guarded by modern Integrated Air Defense Systems (IADS).

Leonardo says its BriteStorm system is able to perform "stand-in jamming," which is an airborne electronic warfare capability that is deployed ahead of the main force to deliver high-powered interference against a wide spectrum of threats. The aim is for BriteStorm to degrade the enemy's IADS, suppressing its ability to detect and lock onto other platforms, which will protect friendly forces and enable them to further their mission.

The BriteStorm payload is designed to be installed on the widest possible range of unmanned aerial systems (UAVs), aka drones, and launched effects. It equips each platform with an advanced array of digital deception techniques, deployable at long range.

Developed at Leonardo's electronic warfare research and manufacturing base in Luton, UK, BriteStorm builds on the Digital Radio Frequency Memory (DRFM) technology that underpins the company's in-service BriteCloud countermeasure, the only DRFM-based expendable on the market to have been demonstrated effective in live tests. In contrast to BriteCloud, which is designed to disrupt incoming missiles' radar guidance systems, BriteStorm has been engineered to confuse and suppress ground-based surveillance radars on the go, preventing the enemy from tracking -- and then engaging -- friendly forces.

BriteStorm works by using Leonardo's mission-tested DRFM technology to detect and evaluate the electronic warfare threat environment and then choosing the most relevant countermeasure technique. The system can act as a decoy to stimulate enemy air defenses or produce obscuration and confusion techniques to deny the enemy from building up a complete air picture.

Depending on the situation, BriteStorm's effects can range from barraging the enemy system with electronic noise to more sophisticated techniques such as creating dozens of realistic "ghost" fighter jet signatures, confusing and misdirecting the enemy response.

BriteStorm is small, lightweight, and platform-agnostic. A standard BriteStorm fit incorporates a platform-specific antenna, transmit-receive modules, and Leonardo's Miniature Technique Generator. Leonardo says the system is simple to integrate, making BriteStorm an accessible route to establishing a powerful, stand-in jamming capability.

The UK Royal Air Force's Rapid Capabilities Office (RCO) is working with Leonardo in relation to the capability and has purchased payloads to conduct trials. Successful flights with the RCO proving the capability have already taken place.

In addition to the UK Ministry of Defense, Leonardo views the U.S. Department of Defense as a key potential customer for BriteStorm, with the payload able to deliver a capability advantage to operators in contested electronic warfare environments. The system is rapidly reprogrammable too, so it can match the pace of the evolving threats. BriteStorm has been designed to be readily exportable, with demonstration units already in the United States.

Lasers for defeating drones too
Stateside, Leonardo DRS, the company's U.S.-based division (Arlington, VA), recently conducted a live-fire demonstration, along with its partner BlueHalo, of a new Counter Unmanned Aircraft System (C-UAS) Directed Energy (DE) Stryker designed to defeat Group 1-3 UAS with multiple kinetic and non-kinetic defeat technologies. Stryker is the U.S. Army's medium-weight, eight-wheeled, armored fighting vehicle.

The Counter-UAS Directed Energy Stryker laser weapon system. [Credit: Photo courtesy of Leonardo DRS]

 

 

During the September 2024 demonstration for U.S. Army officials in Socorro, NM, the mobile C-UAS capability successfully destroyed numerous drones using BlueHalo's 26-kW LOCUST Laser Weapon System. Additionally, the demonstration included near-simultaneous C-UAS and ground engagements with the laser and a 30-mm remote weapon station (RWS). The C-UAS DE Stryker successfully destroyed every drone over the two-day demonstration.

Leonardo DRS has deep experience in developing, integrating, and fielding mobile air defense and C-UAS solutions for the U.S. Army. This most recent demonstration is the latest step in a process that started with the company identifying the need for a directed energy, multi-layered mobile C-UAS system built around best-of-breed technologies from strong partners.

"In just eight months, Leonardo DRS and our outstanding industry partners designed, built, and tested this Stryker-based Directed Energy Counter-UAS prototype. We were able to move quickly by leveraging DRS's proven experience building a cohesive team of partners to rapidly deliver air defense capabilities to the Army," said Aaron Hankins, senior vice president and general manager of Leonardo DRS Land Systems. "Our C-UAS Directed Energy Stryker is a future capability available to warfighters today."

The Stryker includes two primary kinetic effectors: EOS Defense Systems' USA R400 30-mm RWS with Northrop Grumman's XM914 cannon and BAE Systems' 2.75-in. (70-mm) Advanced Precision Kill Weapon System fired from an Arnold Defense launcher. The on-board radar is DRS' RPS-92 nMHR, which provides long-range detection, continuous tracking, and weapon system cueing. As the lead vehicle integrator, DRS Land Systems worked across the coalition to integrate these capabilities.

Non-kinetic effectors include BlueHalo's LOCUST LWS, which is stored inside the Stryker and deployed when a threat is detected. The 26-kW LWS combines precision optical and laser hardware with advanced software and processing to enable and enhance the directed energy "kill chain." It tracks, identifies, and defeats Group 1-3 UAS and other threats. In addition to the LOCUST LWS, the Stryker employs BlueHalo's Titan C-UAS and Titan-SV non-kinetic technologies, delivering comprehensive 360-degree surveillance and threat detection and mitigation of Group 1 and 2 drone threats.

The C-UAS DE Stryker provides soldiers with the mobility, firepower, and protection required to maneuver, fight, and survive at the tactical level in contested environments. The Stryker has enhanced lethality to defeat ground and air threats, and it is fully integrated with the US Army's Forward Area Air Defense Command and Control (FAAD C2) network, ensuring it is interoperable with other Air Defense systems.

The new C-UAS DE Stryker brings together innovative technologies from a coalition of industry partners. In addition to Leonardo DRS and BlueHalo, the coalition includes EOS Defense Systems USA, Northrop Grumman, BAE Systems, Digital Systems Engineering, Arnold Defense, and AMPEX.

Sources: Leonardo, Leonardo DRS

Published November 2024

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