Fiber Optic Drones
The Russians are using an amazing approach to drone warfare in Ukraine — fiber optic controlled drones. They are avoiding radio detection and jamming by using drones which play out and communicate through an optical fiber.
“Russian forces are using explosive-packed drones connected to their operators by fiber-optic cables to deliver unjammable precision strikes on Ukrainian troops and military equipment, and Kyiv is looking for a fix to fight back.
Fiber-optic drones have been increasingly appearing in combat over about the past year, and they’re a challenge. These drones are dangerous because they can’t be jammed with traditional electronic warfare and are difficult to defend against, “
The drones have a range limited by the length of the fiber, however this length is 10 kilometers.
The fiber optic drone technology is new but not expensive – I searched for “fiber optic drone hobby kit” and saw prices around $300.
The discussion of what to do about fiber optic drones (same link) focuses on detecting drones whick don’t emit radio signals. I have a crazy thought (as always). It seems to me that the very thin fibers are very vulnerable. Two drones each attached to an end of a much shorter and stronger fiber can sever the optical vibers (here one of my drones flies above the other – the optical control fibers are roughly horizontal). It seems to me possible to have my drones cut off access through a zone they patrol.
Also I clearly don’t understand modern electronic warfare. I thought (and really still think ) that it is possible to avoid jamming. I don’s see why the technology used to keep WiFi signals from jamming each other combined with the technology used to keep cell phone signals from jamming each other doesn’t work when countering deliberate military jamming.
It sure seems that this technology was not in use farily recently “Operators also switch between frequencies mid-flight” does not come close to the constant switching used by the WiFI which connects this laptop to the web.
But the main new point is that a drone connected to its controller by a fiber optic cable is actually practica l and cheap. It is difficult to detect such drones and impossible to jam the signal. I wonder if it is possible to cut off communication (pun intended)
When Hedy Lamarr invented the technology in the 1930s, it was much more primitive. I get the impression that modern electronic warfare is fairly good at degrading frequency switching or code modulation signal quality and reliability. If nothing else, spoofing real signals with fake signals is a leveraged way to jam bandwidth, and it can use existing traffic as a model improve targeting.
I suppose one could try to cut the fiber cables, but that means flying constant picket drones which can be detected and avoided. We’ll see what they come up with.
Jamming is easy…. Counter jamming is one step harder than the jamming it answewrs.
Since WW II when they learned to spoof radar with “chaff”- physical matter sometimes like tin foil to 1972 when the protect B-52’s the USAF bought up lots of Christmas tree tinsel….. and shipped it to Guam.
To “frequency hopping”. Each new anti jam gets a quick and easy new jamming technique.
One appeal of fiber optics in the development (1980’s) is it could not (at the time be jammed/disrupted) be “harmed” and could not be listened in on.
One issue with putting US systems in Ukraine is the Russians have now “listened” and analyzed years of operating emissions in a variety of mission modes and can jam to better effect.
Vicious and expensive tech cycle.