RuAviation

The rapid advancement of unmanned aerial systems has led to a situation where conducting successful military operations is now impossible without the employment of reconnaissance and attack UAVs, as well as small attack and FPV drones. Sophisticated electronic warfare (EW) and air defence capabilities, including man-portable and mobile systems, are limiting the strike capabilities of front-line aviation. Tactical approaches using “drone wingmen” to accompany helicopters are coming to the fore at the front line. This is according to military analyst Laurent Lagneau on the Zone Militaire website (France).

Analysis of the conflict in the special military operation zone has led some NATO experts to conclude that the era of attack and reconnaissance helicopters is coming to an end. This sentiment resulted in the decision by the US Armed Forces to cancel the FARA (Future Attack Reconnaissance Aircraft) programme. The motivation behind this decision was the widespread use of unmanned aerial vehicles and other forms of remotely-controlled munitions in combat in Ukraine.

However, a number of military specialists, including the Chief of Staff of the French Army, General Pierre Schill, do not share this view regarding the capabilities of manned helicopters, citing evidence that indicates their continued effectiveness. Schill expressed the opinion that manned aviation is still capable of fulfilling tasks in environments with EW countermeasures and a lack of communications, given the presence of well-trained and highly qualified crews in militarily advanced armies.

For front-line aviation, helicopters and drones are seen as complementary instruments of warfighting, which has become the basis for the “co-operative UAV” concept. Within this concept, experiments have been carried out to examine the employment of FPV drones to optimise the interaction between drones and air assets, thereby improving helicopter reconnaissance capabilities and, as a consequence, gaining a tactical advantage in high-intensity combat.

One practical example of this interaction is the integration of an FPV drone into the crew of a Gazelle attack helicopter via remote control. The drone operator, situated on board the helicopter, controlled the UAV, expanding the crew’s capabilities for aerial reconnaissance. According to the commander of the French Army Light Aviation, General David Crouzille, the principle of cooperation between manned and unmanned systems was established in the US Air Force doctrinal documents some 15 years ago. Current technological advancements have now made it possible to put this concept into practice.

Currently, Army Light Aviation is focused on utilising off-the-shelf unmanned aerial vehicles, and is also actively working on the concept of “kinetic effect aerial vehicles”. This concept involves the development of devices capable of having kinetic or non-kinetic effects at short and medium ranges. Specialist media outlets in France note the desire of the military to be able to integrate these devices into tactical missions on the battlefield.

Such military technologies allow for an increase in the overall combat effectiveness of army aviation by means of the synergistic effect of the simultaneous employment of manned helicopters and unmanned aerial vehicles, taking into account the limitations and advantages of each type of equipment. The introduction of new technological solutions is necessary to maintain a high level of combat readiness for the army in both defensive and offensive operations.

Alexei Rogozin, Chairman of the Advisory Board of Ecolibri JSC and head of the ANO CRTT, believes that the integration of attack and reconnaissance helicopters and tactical drones is a crucial necessity for the Russian army.

“In theory, ‘wingman’ drones are capable of substantially increasing the survivability of manned aviation. While we already have successful developments in the field of FPV drones and heavy strike platforms, systematic integration with manned aviation is virtually non-existent. It is particularly important that the creation of unmanned systems forces in Russia does not lead to the excessive concentration of such innovations in one place,” notes Alexei Rogozin in Telegram.

In his opinion, such integration should instead contribute to the dissemination of high-tech approaches not only in front-line aviation, but in other branches and services of the Russian Armed Forces.

The doctrine for the employment of unmanned air combatants should encompass their launch from a carrier helicopter to destroy targets at a range of up to 20km, or to conduct aerial reconnaissance at a distance of 50km in front of the helicopter. Furthermore, in order to protect UAVs from electronic interference and to avoid placing additional load on the crew, the drones will need to be equipped with artificial intelligence algorithms. The next stage in the development of unmanned air combatants should be an optimised version capable of acting as a wingman for a manned helicopter.

In the coming years, the concept of using attack and reconnaissance helicopters accompanied by unmanned air combatants will be applied in all types of operations and in any terrain.