The use of UAV interceptors to increase the detection range of intruder drones

Abstract

Various threats of terrorist attacks on the social infrastructure arise due to strengthening of terrorist organizations, both in the context of their coming to power in certain countries (Afghanistan), and their association with the drug business, which significantly increases the financing of terrorist structures, allowing them to acquire modern weapons. Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) are cheap, readily available and capable of carrying containers of lethal agents, what make them a common means of terrorist attack. Effective protection of critical industrial facilities from UAV terrorist attacks is an important task for improving systems and means of electronic warfare against terrorism.
 This paper considers the possibility of detecting an UAV near a critically important industrial facility using small-sized radar stations (SRS) placed on board of UAV-interceptors. Typically, SRS are placed on board drones for radio mapping of the terrain, operational-tactical and reconnaissance combat missions, and rescue operations. The possibility of using SRS on board interceptor drones to detect intruder drones as an additional channel to a remote radar channel has not been considered anywhere before.
 The paper provides a review of existing small-sized radar stations (SRS) that can be used or are used on-board of UAVs, as well as a review of existing UAV-interceptors. It is shown that UAV-interceptors equipped with SRS can be used to fly around the area about a critical industrial facility, by analogy with overflights performed by multicopters around agricultural areas, with recharging in specially equipped places for this at different distances from the control center and from critical industrial facility.
 A method is proposed to increase the existing optical and acoustic channel for detecting an intruder drone by an order of magnitude, and the radar channel by 5 km, if not only small-sized radar, but also optoelectronic with the acoustic UAV detection system are installed on the UAV-interceptor with the integrated use of these channels with remote radar UAV detection system.