Photo: Raytheon
For the side that uses them, drones have become the stars of the battlefield, but for the ones at the receiving end of whatever devastation a drone carries, they are perhaps the most dangerous threats of our time. And given how in a war every side is at the same time an attacker and a defender, armies must know how to properly handle each aspect of combat operations.
America, the owner of an extensive fleet of drones of all shapes, sizes, and uses, is also investing heavily in systems that can help it defend against this pesky flying weapons. And one result of such investments is something called the Ku-band Radio Frequency Sensor, or KuRFS.
We first stumbled upon the technology more than a year ago, when the technology's maker, defense contractor Raytheon, presented it as part of the U.S. Army's Low, slow, small-unmanned aircraft Integrated Defense System (LIDS). Earlier versions of the KuRFS, however, date back to 2013, and iterations of it have already been deployed on the battlefields of Iraq and Afghanistan, clocking more than 1.6 million operational hours.
The most recent version of the tech was seriously put through its paces during the U.S. Army's annual summer test period in 2024, proving it can be easily integrated with the Coyote weapons system. More importantly, though, the tech showed it can be successfully used against a multitude of drones, engaging them all at once.
Such a capability is made possible by the 360-degree radar that is capable of picking up not only drones, but also rockets, artillery, and mortars.
Raytheon does not go into the specifics of the tests, which were primarily targeted at validating software improvements, but says the KuRFS performed great in a stress procedure, "successfully detecting and tracking a swarm of unmanned aircraft vehicles."
Once identified, the targets were engaged by the Coyote, either one by one or in swarms. The takedown system, thanks to the improvements made to it, countered the unnamed threats, with various sizes and degrees of maneuverability, faster than before (unclear exactly how fast).
Raytheon is betting on the improvements made to capture the attention of the U.S. Army, which is presently engaged in an effort to upsize its counter-drone arsenal. Only through LIDS, for instance, the military branch spent $374.8 million in recent times to equip itself with such means of defense.
Chances are the KuRFS and its related pieces of hardware will continue to be used, as the system has been designed to be upgradable to match the advancements made by enemies when it comes to drone technology. The company making it says it has "further invested in test equipment and tooling to support and sustain increased capacity ahead of schedule."
We first stumbled upon the technology more than a year ago, when the technology's maker, defense contractor Raytheon, presented it as part of the U.S. Army's Low, slow, small-unmanned aircraft Integrated Defense System (LIDS). Earlier versions of the KuRFS, however, date back to 2013, and iterations of it have already been deployed on the battlefields of Iraq and Afghanistan, clocking more than 1.6 million operational hours.
The most recent version of the tech was seriously put through its paces during the U.S. Army's annual summer test period in 2024, proving it can be easily integrated with the Coyote weapons system. More importantly, though, the tech showed it can be successfully used against a multitude of drones, engaging them all at once.
Such a capability is made possible by the 360-degree radar that is capable of picking up not only drones, but also rockets, artillery, and mortars.
Raytheon does not go into the specifics of the tests, which were primarily targeted at validating software improvements, but says the KuRFS performed great in a stress procedure, "successfully detecting and tracking a swarm of unmanned aircraft vehicles."
Once identified, the targets were engaged by the Coyote, either one by one or in swarms. The takedown system, thanks to the improvements made to it, countered the unnamed threats, with various sizes and degrees of maneuverability, faster than before (unclear exactly how fast).
Raytheon is betting on the improvements made to capture the attention of the U.S. Army, which is presently engaged in an effort to upsize its counter-drone arsenal. Only through LIDS, for instance, the military branch spent $374.8 million in recent times to equip itself with such means of defense.
Chances are the KuRFS and its related pieces of hardware will continue to be used, as the system has been designed to be upgradable to match the advancements made by enemies when it comes to drone technology. The company making it says it has "further invested in test equipment and tooling to support and sustain increased capacity ahead of schedule."
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