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Counter-drone training: jam today and jam tomorrow?

The impact of UAS on the modern battlefield is huge, not just as evidenced by the war in Ukraine, but also in lower-intensity operations as it is easy for insurgents to obtain small ‘prosumer’ drones to use for surveillance or improvised delivery of weapons.

Counter-UAS (C-UAS) sensors and weapons and the TTPs associated with them are developing rapidly, but are still relatively in their infancy, particularly as regards the possible variety of threats. 

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Countering a single UAV may be relatively straightforward, but how do you cope with a swarm? And how do you train against these threats? UAS use is closely regulated, which may make training against live targets away from ranges challenging.

Training on traditional ground-based air defence (GBAD) weapons used in the C-UAS role fundamentally remains the same. Simulators can be modified to include UAS in their scenarios, and if appropriate the weapons can be used against live targets.

Training in the use of non-kinetic C-UAS systems such as jammers presents a different challenge. The indiscriminate impact such devices may have on the local electronic environment can cause unacceptable disruption to civilian infrastructure.

Oleg Vornik, chief executive of Australian company DroneShield, which supplies tactical handheld C-UAS equipment, suggested to the author that ‘it’s easier to find somewhere to train with a machine gun than it is a jammer’.

Many of DroneShield’s customers may not have access to a suitably isolated site, or even if they have it may require long-distance travel and not offer suitable physical surroundings, such as in an urban environment.

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Vornik said that ideally a DroneShield training package would consist of: classroom instruction on handling and operating the weapon; TTPs for dismounted, vehicle-borne or fixed employment; maintenance training; and live practice. It is the latter that is problematic.

He observed that tactical C-UAS is ‘a very nascent area and there has not been a lot of thought about adequate training’. Compared with the sophistication of firearms training, ‘for counter-drone we’re at the very beginning’.

DroneShield has partnered with fellow Australian company Operator, part of XRG, to produce a VR training system for the DroneGun product line.

Kim Hopwood, executive director at XRG, told the author that the OP-1 has been developed from Operator’s VR close combat tactical trainer, which is in use with the Australian Defence Force. This was designed to enable use of real weapons in a virtual environment with an electronic sensor package linking the gun to the simulation.

OP-1 consists of a standalone head-mounted display, together with an emulated DroneGun equipped with a sensor package. Standard scenarios can be provided with the system or they can be customer-defined, with specific environments or targets.

The user operates within the VR environment and can activate the weapon against multiple UAS threats. The instructor drives the scenario on an Android tablet, which acts as a server and can connect multiple trainees. The system is packaged in a single case and is designed to be simple, portable and deployable.

Hopwood said that the system is still at the final trial and development stage, with demonstrations to potential customers, but that there is ‘serious interest in the market’.

At the lowest tactical level kinetic C-UAS effects can also be achieved by small arms, such as the shotguns recently used against micro-drones in a French naval C-UAS exercise, or the SmartShooter SMASH fire control system recently procured by the British Army. This can be fitted to an individual weapon and ‘will give the dismounted soldier the ability to achieve a high probability of hit against micro- and mini UAVs’.

To provide live training with this sort of weapon, Saab is developing the capability to instrument a tactical drone, allow it to be tracked in a live tactical engagement simulation system (TESS), and in due course for it to be equipped with detectors so it can engage with a laser transmitter and be ‘disabled’.

This would allow the UAV to be engaged within a live training event by individual soldiers, with a realistic outcome.

Above: Training soldiers to use small arms against UAVs could be incorporated into existing tactical engagement simulation systems. (Photo: French Navy)

Revealed at the 2023 IT2EC event in April, the capability was demonstrated to an unspecified customer in May. The concept will also be introduced to the wider Saab TESS user community to assess the extent of interest.

Moving up the scale, Mark Radford, chief technical officer of C-UAS radar developer Blighter Surveillance Systems, told the author that the UAV threat emphasis had altered since the Ukraine war.

Previously the main concern had been smaller quadcopter aircraft, he said, but now the focus has shifted to Orlan-10-size UAVs with a 2-3m wingspan. He noted it is ‘hugely challenging’ to train against this sort of threat, as replicating these aircraft and their signature is more difficult.

He said that Blighter has developed a reflector that can be fitted to a smaller air vehicle that will then appear to the radar operator as the correct-size target.

Radford said that he was unaware of embedded simulations in complex multi-sensor, multi-effector systems, noting that this would require development of an intricate solution that would be a considerable challenge and might not be worth the effort.

He added that in the case of training with a jammer it was always possible to reduce power or restrict bandwidth to lessen the chance of collateral interference, while ensuring that the correct effect on the threat was still registered.

Above: MBDA uses a combination of live and virtual elements to train operators on its multi-faceted Sky Warden C-UAS system. (Photo: MBDA)

MBDA meanwhile produces the modular Sky Warden C-UAS system, designed to ‘neutralise Class 1 and 2 UAVs, integrating and controlling a large panel of sensors and effectors’. The latter includes jammers and directed energy weapons as well as more traditional GBAD assets.

An MBDA spokesperson told the author that ‘Sky Warden offers a flexible training solution optimised for the customer’s needs and system configuration, involving a mix of live and virtual training.

‘MBDA also offers regular low-burden virtual training for users. In addition, MBDA supports customers by providing in-country training in the fine tuning of the system for specific environments.’

According to the spokesperson, while kinetic effectors such as the Mistral missile have embedded virtual training, a common feature of short-range GBAD weapons, non-kinetic effects are simulated through Sky Warden’s integrated C2 system.

That’s a FAcT: Canada’s aircrew training programme is up for grabs

Editor's Note: This article was prepared before the contract award to SkyAlyne Canada on 28 July.

The two competing consortia for Canada’s multi-billion-dollar Future Aircrew Training (FAcT) programme are waiting with bated breath for a contract award, which will be in 2024.

The RfP was issued in February 2022 and closed in January 2023 with bid evaluation in progress.

According to Canadian government procurement documents, FAcT will ‘renew aircrew training services to help maintain a multi-purpose and combat capable air force. It will include delivery of pilot training, as well as aircrew training for air combat systems officers and airborne electronic sensor operators.’

Above: Both FAcT bidders plan to use the Grob G120TP, seen here in UK Military Flying Training System service, as their fixed-wing basic trainer on the programme. (Photo: UK MoD/Crown Copyright)

This will be a comprehensive effort across three locations that provides aircraft, simulators, civilian instructors and classroom training, as well as other services such as aircraft and airfield maintenance, accommodation and catering.

One contract will cover all requirements, including maintenance and infrastructure, and will last ‘at least 20 years’.

Currently such services are provided under two separate contracts. NATO Flying Training in Canada is delivered by CAE Military Aviation Training with an expiry date of 2028; the contract includes an additional option year, which could extend services to 2029. The Contracted Flying Training and Support programme is provided by Allied Wings, led by KF Aerospace, and that contract will expire in 2027.

Originally BAE Systems, Airbus Defence and Space and Lockheed Martin Canada were interested in bidding, but all withdrew. The two remaining competitors are SkyAlyne Canada, a partnership of CAE and KF Aerospace with several subcontractors, and Babcock Leonardo Canadian Aircrew Training (CAT), a partnership between these two companies, again with various subcontractors on board.

SkyAlyne is emphasising its position as essentially the incumbent. According to its website it is ‘ready to hit the ground running with teams of experts already in place and operating Canada’s two current military pilot training programmes (that will be transitioned to FAcT). We offer a seamless, low-risk collaborative transition to the new programme.’

SkyAlyne will provide the Grob G 120TP and King Air 260 as fixed-wing turboprop pilot trainers, plus the Pilatus PC-21 advanced trainer. The Airbus H135 will be used for helicopter training, and the De Havilland Dash 8 for Air Combat Systems Officer (ACSO) and Airborne Electronic Sensor Operator (AES Op) instruction.

On the simulation side, CAE is of course one of the largest major global providers of flight simulators. One SkyAlyne subcontractor is Bluedrop Simulation, which currently supports the CFTS programme, providing a number of aircrew training devices for helicopter rear crew, hoist operators and gunnery missions.

Babcock Leonardo CAT will also utilise the G 120TP for all pilot students. Advanced training for fixed-wing aviators will be on the Leonardo M-345 jet, and multi-engine training on the King Air 260. Helicopter training will also be on the H135, with ACSO and AES Op training on the ATR 72.

Simulator capability will come from FlightSafety International’s full-flight devices plus the MATRIX integrated training system. This consists of a desktop simulator, integrated courseware, graphic flight-deck simulator and SimVu debriefing package.

Both teams are emphasising their Canada-centric nature, as this is a central part of the requirement. According to the procurement website: ‘Canada’s Industrial and Technological Benefits Policy applies to this procurement, requiring the winning suppliers to place investments in Canada equal to the value of the contract.’

There is also a requirement for competitors to ‘submit an Indigenous Participation Plan as part of their bids. The winning supplier will commit to supporting Indigenous participation in Canada.’

Contractor-delivered aircrew training is now the norm rather than the exception. Winning this contract would be a major achievement for the successful bidder and both teams are involved in comparable existing programmes or competitions.

Above: CAE currently provides simulators for NATO Flying Training in Canada, which could run until 2029 before being supplanted by FAcT. (Photo: CAE)

CAE operates a global network of air training centres, including a C-130 facility in Florida; the USAF Initial Flight Training programme in Colorado; the International Flight Training School in Italy (where it is actually partnered with Leonardo); and the Initial Flight Training Deutschland facility in Bremen among others.

CAE is also leading AUStringer, one of the consortia competing for the Australian Future Aviation Mission Training System that will train several different air mission specialists.

Babcock is one of the prime contractors (with Lockheed Martin) in Ascent Flight Training which provides the UK Military Flying Training System. It is also partnered with Dassault for the French F-Air 21 programme, formerly known as FOMEDEC, which provides training for jet pilots and weapons systems operators. Ironically CAE is a subcontractor on this programme.

Editor's Note: This article was prepared before the contract award to SkyAlyne Canada on 28 July.

Training for Ukraine – how the Royal Navy is helping out

The Royal Navy (RN) has recently been training members of the Ukrainian forces to disarm, neutralise and dispose of Russian bombs, booby traps and mines that have been laid in their lakes, rivers and the Black Sea.

Both sides have laid sea mines since the invasion in 2022, the Ukrainians to protect their ports and the Russians to restrict their use.

The most recent report from the US National Security Council in mid-July stated that mines had been laid to interfere with Ukrainian grain exports following the breakdown of the agreement with Moscow.

There have also been frequent reports of mines that have broken free of their moorings and are floating uncontrolled.

Above: Royal Navy experts have been training their Ukrainian counterparts in the use of UUVs to identify mine threats. (Photo: UK MoD/Crown Copyright)

The RN said that specialist personnel from its Diving and Threat Exploitation Group (DTXG) used the waters of Loch Ewe in north-west Scotland to pass on their knowledge and expertise to Ukrainian divers, EOD operators and personnel who work with UUVs.

Members of the RN’s Delta Diving Unit 1 and DTXG’s Operational Support Squadron delivered the training alongside NATO allies, including the US, France, Belgium and Georgia, building on existing knowledge and skills of the Ukrainian Expeditionary Mine Countermeasures team and helping them prepare for future operations.

Training progressed from clearing deepwater shipping lanes to rendering shallow water and beaches safe for amphibious raids. It also covered clearing ports, jetties and other infrastructure from potential threats.

The Ukrainian teams trained with crewless underwater vehicles, probably including the Exail A9-M AUV, to enable operators to identify possible threats.

Once a threat was identified, the divers moved in to neutralise the device and make the area safe. The training dealt with all types of targets: free-floating buoyant mines, ground mines and IEDs in, on and around the water.

This package was the latest element of the RN’s contribution to Operation Orbital, the UK’s programme to provide training to Ukrainian forces.

Above: Diver training progressed from clearing deepwater shipping lanes to rendering shallow water and beaches safe for amphibious raids. (Photo: UK MoD/Crown Copyright)

In mid-2022 a comprehensive instructional period was provided for the crews of two Sandown-class minehunters which the UK has donated to Ukraine to help reconstitute its navy.

Eighty navy personnel, forming the crews of Chernihiv (ex-HMS Grimsby) and Cherkasy (ex-HMS Shoreham), began their training, which covered operating all the ship’s equipment as well as weapon drills and damage control, in May 2022 and this continued for several months.

The RN has also provided training, again by the DTXG together with instructors from the US Sixth Fleet, on the Atlas SeaFox autonomous UUV. The UK has donated six of these to Ukraine and announced in August 2022 that it would be providing training and that this had already begun, although the announcement did not specify the equipment model.

Both Chernihiv and Cherkasy took part in the multinational exercise Sea Breeze 2023, which took place in the Firth of Clyde in June and July.

Usually held in the Black Sea, and co-hosted by Ukraine and the US since 1997, the exercise was transferred to UK waters because of the Russian invasion. Ukrainian personnel were observed operating the SeaFox during the exercise.

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