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V2O5 OP t1_istggd3 wrote

Submission statement:

In Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, killer drones have cemented their reputation as a potent, cost-effective weapon that can seek out and destroy targets while simultaneously spreading the kind of terror that can fray the resolve of soldiers and civilians alike.

They’re also quickly surpassing missiles as the remote weapon of choice. Known as “the poor man's cruise missile,” the flying death machines can flood any combat theater much more cheaply.

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Dramatic-Brain-745 t1_isv1elk wrote

Let’s be honest, it’s a crappier version of the V2 Rocket straight from the 3rd Reich’s arsenal, scaled down.

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Dziadzios t1_it2g76c wrote

If it does boom at desired location then it's good enough.

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Logic_rocks t1_isv1vos wrote

How is ot crappier?

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Dramatic-Brain-745 t1_isv2vmh wrote

Hitlers V2 Rockets we’re heavier, even duds would knock out buildings because they were 2 tons. They were also significantly faster. Hitlers V2 rockets flew at 400 MPH creating a kinetic impact if they failed that would knock down most buildings.

Vlads fly at 115MPH, weigh in at 400 pounds and cost nearly the same.

Now, I’d assume Hitlers were 25k back in the 40s, and Putins are 20k today. Not sure if the info I was reading accounted for cost, but if it did, the V2 rocket would be the obvious choice for this style of war.

I’m glad Putin isn’t using them, but in my opinion, his drones fell short of impressive. Unless he’s got a Protoss carrier filled with 10k of them, I’d say this is just him trying to get some cheap shots in.

Furthermore, Drone defenses are on the way to Ukraine, and modern drone defenses would not Stop a V2 rocket onslaught.

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ACCount82 t1_isxab15 wrote

On the other hand, V2's guidance was dogshit - but that's just tech levels for you. Modern electronics make it easier to implement guidance.

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numba1cyberwarrior t1_iswvfpc wrote

This comment is so wrong.

>Hitlers V2 Rockets we’re heavier, even duds would knock out buildings because they were 2 tons. They were also significantly faster. Hitlers V2 rockets flew at 400 MPH creating a kinetic impact if they failed that would knock down most buildings.

Firepower alone does not mean effectiveness. These drones are exponentially more accurate.

>Now, I’d assume Hitlers were 25k back in the 40s, and Putins are 20k today. Not sure if the info I was reading accounted for cost, but if it did, the V2 rocket would be the obvious choice for this style of war.

A V2 rocket is significantly more expensive then the drones being flung around Ukraine right now. Some of them are litterly being built with plastic parts bought from Aliexpress.

>Furthermore, Drone defenses are on the way to Ukraine, and modern drone defenses would not Stop a V2 rocket onslaught.

It highly depends on the drone. There are drones that can fly extremely low and follow pre programed paths to avoid air defense networks. V2s cant really do that much. V2s are quite easy to shoot down with modern air defense networks. They were even being shot down by WW2 propeller airplanes. Drones can also be launched from almost anywhere unlike V2 rockets.

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audiomagnate t1_isthafw wrote

I'm betting the Ukrainians will figure out how to stop these things soon. The Vietnamese used a system of spotters with telephones and small arms to take out low flying planes fifty years ago.

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mylefthandkilledme t1_ists3h5 wrote

Ukrainians are shooting them down. Problem is that they come in swarms. You can shoot down 37/40, but the 3 that get through end up in apartments or markets or schools.

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scooby_doo_shaggy t1_istlfsa wrote

Well there's already videos of Ukrainian police with AK's and shit shooting these down. Safe to assume most Western/NATO countries have fairly adequate defenses/funding for dealing with drone strikes.

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oneplusetoipi t1_istoa0k wrote

I think they should spread microphones out and use voice recognition software to identify the drones. They can be triangulated so their positions and flight paths are identified. Multiple weapons systems can knock them out.

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warplants t1_isu677u wrote

Even better if you listen for radio waves instead of sound, since radio travels much further faster. (This is called ELINT and is already in widespread use.)

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Aceticon t1_isuvnma wrote

Actually sorta that but maybe not in the way you meant it: it's unlikelly that the drone will be in communication with the home base as it's supposed to be autonomous and besides the whole radio thing is commonly used to detect enemy forces so it's the kind of thing any decent system designer would think of, plus GPS receivers are passive - they merelly listen to signals from satellites and use them for triangulation - so there are no emissions from those either.

However, every electric thing does emit some amount of noise in the radio spectrum and the engines possibly also (due to the sparks used to ignite the fuel), so maybe a ground-based wideband receiver with a directional antenna (and it doesn't even need to be a narrow reception window) aiming with the appropriate angle up (basically just enough to stop detecting ground-based devices) will detect them as, even though the signals are weak, there is normally nothing in the air that emits signals quite like that all the way up to Low Earth Orbit (and maybe not even there if the sparks in the engine are what is being detected). Other possibilities involve balloons as there are antenna configurations which allow avoiding catching signals from below, so the "line of sight" of a balloon (just tethered in place) for detection is probably quite long.

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Ralfpker t1_isto8qi wrote

This new season of BattleBots is going to be crazy!

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Test19s t1_isu4ind wrote

We’re watching the First Great Robot War unfold in real time. How I wish I was not a Transformers character.

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Mecha-Dave t1_istyogd wrote

These would be very vulnerable to CIWS or Iron Dome type defenses.

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numba1cyberwarrior t1_iswvncn wrote

Those types of defenses are extremely expensive compared to the cost of these drones.

Those types of assets are only available at the strategic level. Drones are now being used down to the squad level. Individual infantry and armored squads need to be able to defend themselves from drones just like they have MANPADS for aircraft or ATGMs for tanks.

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archibald_claymore t1_isv22bq wrote

Iron dome really only helps with ballistics. These things can dodge a missile going straight at them unlike a fire and forget “conventional” ballistic.

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FuturologyBot t1_istlm20 wrote

The following submission statement was provided by /u/V2O5:

Submission statement:

In Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, killer drones have cemented their reputation as a potent, cost-effective weapon that can seek out and destroy targets while simultaneously spreading the kind of terror that can fray the resolve of soldiers and civilians alike.

They’re also quickly surpassing missiles as the remote weapon of choice. Known as “the poor man's cruise missile,” the flying death machines can flood any combat theater much more cheaply.

Please reply to OP's comment here: https://old.reddit.com/r/Futurology/comments/y7b3kc/killer_drones_vie_for_supremacy_over_ukraine/istggd3/

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audiomagnate t1_isv5e09 wrote

It can't get there soon enough. These things remind of Hunger Games.

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lazyeyepsycho t1_isw0qmy wrote

Did none of you watch the video in the article?

The orc got blown to smithereens...landed on his shoulder it looked like

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26fm65 t1_istu64o wrote

It make Ukraine become their battlefield training.. Russia going be a biggest threat in modern history.

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