By Franz-Stefan Gady
‘Swarmbots’ could mean a new era in autonomous warfare.
Last week, the Office of Naval Research (ONR) released a video showcasing the U.S. Navy’s latest technology for conducting autonomous warfare: LOCUST, or the Low-Cost Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Swarming Technology program.
The LOCUST system can launch up to 30 small pre-programmed drones out of a rocket-launcher type mechanism under a minute, the video illustrates. Once airborne, the drones start communicating with each other autonomously and begin to fly in formation either to reconnoiter or attack an enemy target. “The breakthrough technology (…) utilizes information-sharing between the UAVs, enabling autonomous collaborative behavior in either defensive or offensive missions,” an ONR press release said.
The strategy behind “swarmbots” is simple: assault the adversary with a cloud of cheap and disposable drones and paralyze defenses by the sheer quantity of unmanned attackers in the air.
In comparison to other air-attacks this can be done on the cheap. “Lowering costs is a major benefit of UAVs (…). Even hundreds of small autonomous UAVs cost less than a single tactical aircraft — and (…) having this capability will force adversaries to focus on UAV swarm response,” ONR emphasizes.
Read the full story at The Diplomat