Over the past few decades, the typical operational pattern of the advanced army has been to first strike precisely with expensive missiles and then mass bombard with cheaper cannons.H, after the outbreak of the Russian conflict, military experts have generally acknowledged that the role of the seemingly undesirable drones in the modern battlefield is becoming increasingly important.
The Russian conflict highlighted the importance of low-cost long-range drones, and the Western countries have not yet developed enough in this regard. According to reports, now the United States, France, Britain and other countries are competing to mimic targets targeting Iranian "Sahed" drones, trying to mimic this "high-cost" drone. In addition, Swedish weapons manufacturer Sabo Group is also currently selling some drones for targeting exercises, the appearance features are similar to "Sahed".
Dozens of times.
American companies like Iranian drones
At the beginning of the 21st century, Iran began to develop the "Shahed" drone, and Iran has since begun to use this drone. It is estimated that the price of the "Shahed" drone is between 20,000 and 50,000 US dollars, and the longest flight distance can exceed 1,000 miles (about 1,609 kilometers). In contrast, the Altius long-range drone produced by American defense company Anduril Industries sells for as much as $1 million each.
In July, U.S. Secretary of Defense Hergezes announced that the U.S. Department of Defense was simplifying the “dangerous procedures” and accelerating the production of drones. He also hoped to equip the U.S. military forces with low-cost drones. A long-time columnist focused on military in the United States, Taylor Rogue said that the U.S. needs to imitate a lot of “Shahrud” drones. In his view, the U.S. now needs not how complex, how expensive, how fine drones, but what the U.S. needs is the “Shahrud” drone. One of the biggest features of the “Shahrud” drone is the cheap price, and once a long-term conflict breaks out, it is about purchasing this cheap and easy-to-produ
During the Pentagon event this summer, more than one of the 18 U.S.-made drones on display was similar to the Shahrud drone. A Lucas drone from SpektreWorks, Arizona, was very similar to the Shahrud drone. The company said the drone was “economic and low after maintenance requirements”. The US-made Griffin Aircraft’s remote attack drone Arrowhead (pile) also resembles the Shahrud.
Cheap vs better performance.
U.S. military experts: The rules of the game have changed
Steve Wright, who advises the UK government on drones, said the Shahed's triangular wing design facilitates low-cost mass production. "This design usually requires no structural components." In addition, the use of fiberglass or carbon fiber to build the fuselage and the use of propeller engines also help reduce costs.
Some western manufacturers claim that the performance of their drones is superior to that of Shahed, but the price is naturally higher. British engineering company MGI Engineering said that its own long-range drone SkyShark (Sky Shark) can fly at a speed of 280 miles per hour, compared with about 115 miles per hour of Shahed. Mike gascoyne, the founder of the company, said that compared with Shahed, Sky Shark is more difficult to hit. It is said that the "Sky Shark" sells for between $50,000 and $65,000.
Expensive labor and materials are a problem facing almost all Western drone manufacturers, according to military experts, modern battlefields show that the West needs more cheap and short-cycle weapons to replace those that cost more than a million dollars and produce more than a year.
James Barton Rogers, a drone expert at the Institute of Technology Policy at Brooks College Cornell University, said that the strategy of "consuming defense systems with mass-produced drones" on the battlefield has changed the rules of the game. "Cheap long-range mass-produced strike weapons are one of the biggest threats to international security."
Red Star journalist Li Jinrui
Edited by Jan.
Review by Feng Shui