US company Epirus' Leonidas HPeM weapon, developed to counter UAVs by damaging the electronics through high-power electromagnetics, has taken down 49 UAVs at once during a test.
Axios reported that Leonidas took down a swarm of 49 UAVs at once as part of a demonstration event held at Camp Atterbury, Indiana. Officials from the U.S. military and other countries attended the event.
The test marks the largest UAV swarm that has been pitted against Leonidas to date. It is not known if the UAVs approached as one group or divided into multiple groups from multiple directions.
Leonidas is being developed for different applications, including fixed, trailer-mounted, fully mobile, and UAV-mounted (far smaller antenna) configurations.
HPeM Weaponry Answer to C-UAS Problems?
HPeM-based C-UAS systems like Leonidas have gained considerable attention worldwide, with the jamming losing its effectiveness, laser weapons having a way to go in terms of lethality, and the firing costs of conventional hard-kill systems.
A HPeM weapon sends out microwaves within a field of effect to disable or damage electronic components. An important part of this mechanic is the fact that fibre-optic cables, making UAVs resistant to jamming or autonomous flight capabilities, have no effect against HPeM, as the electronics onboard the UAV are affected instead of the control link.
However, these weapons mostly lack the range of even laser weapons at the moment. But the acceptable power requirement, low chances of circumvention, and the ability to take out multiple UAVs at the same time render them options worth investing in.
Author: Kaan Azman
Editor:Özgür Ekşi
