Cheap drones to kill cheap drones is a better means of defending ships. But accurate gunfire throwing lead into the sky is still the way to go.
The Ford carrier strike group has defensive suicide drones designed to shoot down suicide drones.
If sent to the [Red Sea] region, the strike group will put newly adapted counter-drone weapons to the test as the Navy explores alternatives to shooting down cheap Houthi drones with multimillion-dollar munitions.
The strike group’s Arleigh Burke-class, guided-missile destroyers will deploy with the Coyote and Roadrunner systems, two interceptor-style drone systems that the Navy has spent the past year developing for ship-based launches, two service officials said. The Coyote and Roadrunner systems, which were modified from existing land-based technologies, are specialized drones designed to stop other drones before they reach their intended targets.
I suspect it isn't enough. We could use lots of networked 20mm and 40mm auto-cannons in Phalanx-type weapons on our surface ships to emulate World War II piloted kamikaze defenses. With massed precision-aimed fire (and proximity fuzes in the larger rounds), the wall of lead becomes precise lances of lead.
The real issue is not running out of the means to shoot down attackers before the attackers run out. As always, the value of what you are protecting has to factor into the costs. An expensive air defense missile that protects a multi-billion dollar warship is worth it.
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NOTE: The picture is from the U.S. Navy.
