The night of September 10th marks a surprising intrusion of Russian drones into Polish airspace. The drones were fired as a part of a larger overnight attack on Ukraine, in which as many as 415 drones were sent. Three out of 19 Russian drones were shot after the greatest violation of the sky above NATO since 1949, when it was founded. Donald Tusk, the prime minister of Poland, announced the execution of Article 4, which promises any of the member countries to bring up safety or security concerns to the North Atlantic Council. He also regarded that the incident can be seen as the country being ‘at its closest to open conflict since World War Two.’ Russia has strategically used drones to provoke reactions from NATO member states and plan out its wider strategy of dealing with the rest of Europe, as well as it has been using drones to demolish Ukraine’s crucial infrastructure.
Romanian fighter jets spotted a drone that crossed onto its territory on September 14th near Ukraine’s southern border. The drone was not shot down and it shortly disappeared off the radar. Drone parts were found consistently on Romanian ground since the invasion of Ukraine started three years ago.
Those cases demonstrate the increasing popularity of drone warfare. Drones may seem like a new technology that’s only recently discussed in the news. However, they have established themselves as weapons and sneaky surveillance machines. It is crucial to understand that they have been utilised for over a decade, buy without a doubt, they improved due to technological advances, and they are changing the way that wars are fought.
Because of satellites, some drones reach further now and their operator can use them safely from a remote location. Miniature drones are in constant use, for example Switchblades suicide drones that are used by Ukraine. But defending your country may sometimes require to get creative as funds run out and weapons get damaged. Cheaper commercial drones that are sold widely are modified to carry explosives, but they come with a major disadvantage as they are only used for shorter distances. It is estimated that by 2025 drones accounted for 60-70% of destruction of Russian war equipment.
Drone swarm intelligence has also become increasingly popular as drones act as a collective, coordinated swarm that the operator can control all at the same time. It proves useful in military and defence because it allows improved surveillance of enemy territory, coordinated attack and disruption of communication and radar systems. Additionally to that, AI advancements have allowed drone technologies to thrive, but they still require human supervision. Efficient decision making is possible with the new AI technologies and it cuts the requirement for professional, trained operators. Ukrainska Pravda reported that Swarmer – a Ukrainian company that specialises in artificial intelligence solutions for drones – claimed 15 million dollars for further improvements for the swarm technology.
The warmaking tactics are developing as fast as the new technologies are. War as we know it has come to an end.