> designed to detect, classify, and disrupt the radio links used by hostile unmanned aircraft, especially the cheap first-person-view (FPV) drones that have transformed the war in Ukraine.
Erm... radio jamming has been a concern for quite a while already. This has been combatted with the use of thin fiber-optic cables laid out behind the drones to connect them directly to their operators.
Just one example of this: https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/blogs/ukrainealert/fiber-optics-drones-have-emerged-as-critical-kit-for-both-russia-and-ukraine/
So you're saying this is an upgrade that costs several thousand dollars per device, to combat a threat that is already unlikely?
What kind of masturbatory marketing fluff article is this?
True. But the are other situations and circumstances, namely outside an active war zone, where a nefarious actor might not have access to a mile of fiber optic cable.
And in that situation, what are the odds someone has a radio and the issuer of the radio decided to spend thousands of dollars to upgrade that one radio (and maybe others) to defend against a drone threat? If they were actually worried about a drone threat they'd have real defences like real jammers and anti-air defenses. They wouldn't waste their money on turning handheld radios into weak jammers.
There exists a great number of potential types of FPV drones out there though. Some are fiber optic, some aren't. They serve different niches but most often with the intent to go boom, secondary to that to launch munitions or for reconnaissance/information gathering purposes. Didn't read the article but if the tech is viable and depending on the range of the jamming effect it could be a major tool for disruption capabilities with no extra gadget to carry or the burden of weight/maintenance for the soldier/army. 10 big ones is cheap in military spending. Just depends how many soldiers you want to give one of these, and how fast you can upgrade. You probably would prioritize frontliners first, and you wouldn't need to supply it to an entire squad. If you gave it to say half of the soldiers among a squad you would probably ensure the jamming-capable units being spread out while also giving some wiggle room or backup for incapacitated soldiers. Point being, they still got drones which aren't fiber-optic guided. But again, didn't read the article.
Not to mention other nations can learn from it or adopt the tech. And they could possibly improve upon the discovery to make it more effective. But yeah you are right, jamming has previously been a problem for both sides. Which lead to more fiber optics being used. Doesn't mean jamming and interference isn't important or can't give them an edge in certain situations.
The human cost is much more of a disaster, but yeah, that too is a disaster and will heavily interfere with humanitarian mine clearing after the war too
No_Size9475 | 11 hours ago
“At the cost of a software upgrade . . . single-digit thousands of dollars . . . you can add this capability to a radio they’re already carrying,”
So $9,999 to enable this upgrade PER DEVICE.
SweetLilMonkey | 8 hours ago
"single-digit thousands of dollars" is a very funny phrase
DrMaxwellEdison | 10 hours ago
> designed to detect, classify, and disrupt the radio links used by hostile unmanned aircraft, especially the cheap first-person-view (FPV) drones that have transformed the war in Ukraine.
Erm... radio jamming has been a concern for quite a while already. This has been combatted with the use of thin fiber-optic cables laid out behind the drones to connect them directly to their operators.
Just one example of this: https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/blogs/ukrainealert/fiber-optics-drones-have-emerged-as-critical-kit-for-both-russia-and-ukraine/
So you're saying this is an upgrade that costs several thousand dollars per device, to combat a threat that is already unlikely?
What kind of masturbatory marketing fluff article is this?
extrastupidone | 9 hours ago
True. But the are other situations and circumstances, namely outside an active war zone, where a nefarious actor might not have access to a mile of fiber optic cable.
XysterU | 7 hours ago
And in that situation, what are the odds someone has a radio and the issuer of the radio decided to spend thousands of dollars to upgrade that one radio (and maybe others) to defend against a drone threat? If they were actually worried about a drone threat they'd have real defences like real jammers and anti-air defenses. They wouldn't waste their money on turning handheld radios into weak jammers.
FatAuthority | 8 hours ago
There exists a great number of potential types of FPV drones out there though. Some are fiber optic, some aren't. They serve different niches but most often with the intent to go boom, secondary to that to launch munitions or for reconnaissance/information gathering purposes. Didn't read the article but if the tech is viable and depending on the range of the jamming effect it could be a major tool for disruption capabilities with no extra gadget to carry or the burden of weight/maintenance for the soldier/army. 10 big ones is cheap in military spending. Just depends how many soldiers you want to give one of these, and how fast you can upgrade. You probably would prioritize frontliners first, and you wouldn't need to supply it to an entire squad. If you gave it to say half of the soldiers among a squad you would probably ensure the jamming-capable units being spread out while also giving some wiggle room or backup for incapacitated soldiers. Point being, they still got drones which aren't fiber-optic guided. But again, didn't read the article.
Not to mention other nations can learn from it or adopt the tech. And they could possibly improve upon the discovery to make it more effective. But yeah you are right, jamming has previously been a problem for both sides. Which lead to more fiber optics being used. Doesn't mean jamming and interference isn't important or can't give them an edge in certain situations.
XysterU | 8 hours ago
Sounds like the military industrial complex trying to milk more tax payer money
QuentinMagician | 10 hours ago
So there is fiber threads all over Ukraine? What a disaster. Who is going to pick all of that up?
CleverLittleThief | 9 hours ago
Yes, there is. Already millions of miles of it, birds have started using it for nests.
TabsAZ | 8 hours ago
Yes, there's crazy photos of it like this:
https://www.chosun.com/resizer/v2/EUDYDVNQLNCF7ASHK7B6UF4U2I.jpg?auth=1d7f342637ce9cee6f0f602ef97c7b35d9630e6cf76576585dd747f87354d443&width=616
Lucas_2234 | 8 hours ago
Ideally the russians, as part of their reparations for the illegal invasion.
smaug13 | 6 hours ago
The human cost is much more of a disaster, but yeah, that too is a disaster and will heavily interfere with humanitarian mine clearing after the war too
https://www.pravda.com.ua/eng/articles/2026/05/10/8034095/
andre3kthegiant | 11 hours ago
They gonna bring back “project pigeon”.
BWright79 | 8 hours ago
I don’t think my Beofeng radio is transmitting on 2.4ghz anytime soon