New Israeli anti-drone counter-measure makes debut

A counter-measure system that detects, identifies and disrupts small drones has been debuted by Israel Aerospace Industries.

Drone Guard, displayed at an aeropace exhibition in South Korea this week, combines adapted 3-D radars, electro-optical sensors and dedicated electronic attack jamming systems and comes from IAI subsidiary Elta Systems Ltd.

“We have begun demonstrating these novel capabilities to potential customers, in response to this new threat (from small drones),” said Nissim Hadas, IAI executive vice president and president of Elta Systems. “We believe that in the near future every critical asset and public site will require these safety measures for protection against hostile drones.”

Drone Guard uses 3D radars — including Elta’s ELM-2026D, ELM-2026B and ELM-2026BF — for short, medium and long-range detection of drones, coupled with special detection and tracking algorithms. EO sensors for visual identification of the target are also used.

The systems’ jamming systems, which can be used as a standalone system, disrupts the drone’s flight and can either cause the drone to return to its point of origin or shut down and crash, IAI said.