US defense company Anduril’s new video has showcased a unique possibility for unmanned aerial warfare, as well as the concept of manned-unmanned teaming in war. The system is called Thunder, which Anduril calls an “autonomous attack rotorcraft specifically designed to multiply the combat power and increase the survivability of current and next-generation crewed attack and assault aircraft.”
The video, which was released as the Farnborough Airshow began in the UK, opens by showing how vulnerable large drones are to air defenses. It’s become increasingly clear that, as the drone revolution continues in the United States, Israel, China, and other countries, older systems will lose relevance. Companies like Anduril are, thus, pointing the way to the future.
Anduril stated: “Thunder is equipped with the payload capacity and open architecture required to deliver overwhelming effects for any mission, engineered with the survivability, speed and range critical for the deep fight, and built on flight-proven autonomy that enables validated, high-performance teaming with crewed assets.”
The company also noted, “Thunder is the defense-specific variant of a dual-use platform co-developed with Archer Aviation, bringing the commercial VTOL sector’s rapid innovation in electric propulsion and rotor design directly into defense.”
This matters both on the battlefield and in the broader context of unmanned systems. Anduril is also reported to be considering an expansion of its interests in Israel, which matters for the future of drone warfare.
The future showcased on Ukrainian battlefields
Parts of that future are already on display in the battles in Ukraine. Many countries are looking at what’s happening in Ukraine right now; they want to figure out the war’s future implications, which involve, among other things, myriads of drones being deployed in battle. When you’re dealing with tens of thousands of drones being deployed daily across hundreds of miles, that means that the battlefield has significantly changed.
Small drones aren’t the only thing that will transform the battlefield; they’re one piece of the multi-layered approach of drone warfare. Another part of that approach is the concept of manned-unmanned teaming.
Let’s say that you have a manned platform – such as a warplane, a helicopter, a tank, a submarine, or a frigate – and you pair it with an unmanned system. The unmanned system would be able to enter areas dangerous to humans or conduct tedious work where human operators are less effective because people tire over time. Combine the two – a manned platform and an unmanned one – and you achieve manned-unmanned teaming.
Currently, Thunder is trying to achieve that. Anduril’s video about Thunder shows a type of tiltrotor aircraft system, in which both manned and unmanned aircrafts are working together.
In the video, the unmanned helicopter is deployed against a concentration of air defenses. The manned Apaches, shown at the beginning of the video, are vulnerable to these air defenses. However, the unmanned system is not, and flies ahead of them; it launches a large number of small drones and other decoys. The decoys are able to neutralize the threat posed by the air defenses, and then target the sites those defenses were protecting.
A future with larger unmanned platforms
This presents an interesting concept. It points toward a future where we will not only see manned-unmanned teaming, but where larger unmanned platforms, such as a tiltrotor aircraft, will carry large numbers of other drones. This will likely include small drones that can attack other small drones, as well as decoys and other specialized systems that can conduct surveillance.
Drone warfare appears to be heading towards a point where many types of drones will be integrated into other, larger systems. For example, they could be mounted on tanks, armored vehicles, or other vessels.
Notably, drones can carry smaller drones. For instance, you could launch a platform such as the American MQ-9 Reaper, which can drop either its own munitions or smaller drones. It could also carry loitering munitions, which are often referred to as one-way attack drones, or “kamikaze” drones.
However, Reapers are vulnerable to air defenses in Iran and Yemen. That is why deploying drones from a Reaper makes sense; this enables a Reaper to hold a stand-off from a safe distance away and send in cheaper drones that can carry out missions. The cheaper drones are what is known as “attritable,” which means that they’re more expendable than the warplane that is deploying them. On land, air, and sea, their use is increasingly becoming the norm.
This newfound wrinkle in drone warfare creates many opportunities. It’s almost like a chess game: the opening moves are already known, but the various ways in which the game will develop are both exponential and difficult to foresee.