Rheinmetall persistent surveillance system. (Photo: Rheinmetall)
For all the C4ISR capabilities offered by fixed-wing UAS platforms, there is still a role for aerostats or tethered balloons to carry out military reconnaissance and surveillance missions at high altitudes.
Advocates for aerostats claim the balloons can carry a diverse payload of EO, radar or even EW systems at a lower implementation cost than a fixed-wing uncrewed aircraft, and they can also be employed as communications relay hubs to improve signal transmission in mountainous terrain.
Examples include the Russian AVK-05 tethered aerostat equipped with EO sensors so that (under optimal conditions) it can survey a radius of 10km
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The airborne three-domain, the two ground-based and the ¼ ATR OpenVPX-based cross-domain systems were engineered to provide real-time security across multi-domain operations.
DARPA’s Mission-Integrated Network Control (MINC) programme was set up to develop an autonomous tactical network and enable critical data flow in contested environments.
Why space is an essential part of modern military capabilities
Defence-secure mixed reality headsets can save hours, or even weeks, of travel time to fix defunct equipment or get subject experts effectively “on-site” where they are needed.
The Joint Counter Radio-Controlled Improvised Explosive Device Electronic Warfare (JCREW) counter-improvised explosive device (C-IED) and Drone Restricted Access Using Known Electromagnetic Warfare (DRAKE) counter-UAS (CUAS) systems are mounted and dismounted RF jammers.
Adarga’s Vantage information analysis tool is in service with the UK MoD and individual UK forces. It builds on the company’s Knowledge Platform which processes, organises and analyses open source material, as well as information held by the user’s military, security and intelligence services.
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