Ukraine’s Latest Counter-Drone Weapon is Balloon-Based Sensor

The military issues website The War Zone (TWZ) reported on Tuesday that Ukraine was trialing an electronic surveillance system suspended on an aerostat balloon, which is designed to detect enemy drone operators. TWZ said the exact status of the system, known as Aero Azimuth, was unknown but indicated a growing interest in the use of balloons as a platform for elevated sensors.

Aero Azimuth was developed by the Ukrainian Kvertus company and was reportedly demonstrated at a recent Ukrainian exhibition that focused on counter-drone technologies.

The ground-based versions of the Kvertus Azimuth system are already deployed with Ukraine’s Armed Forces (AFU) but this is the first time it has been applied to an airborne platform. The balloon – or, more properly, the aerostat – is produced by another Ukrainian company, Aerobavovna.

The Aero Azimuth system consists of the electronics pack, the balloon, a trailer with winch to launch and recover the balloon, a helium gas cylinder system to inflate the envelope, plus tools and other equipment used for repair and maintenance.

Azimuth uses passive signals intelligence (SIGINT) equipment to detect and then locate the radio-frequency signals emitted by drone operators to control their aircraft. These signals will include communication, telemetry, and data exchange channels. The information obtained by Azimuth can then be relayed to troops in real time, who can then take action against the drone operator.

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If this information is confirmed, it would be the first time such a weapon had been used since Russia invaded in February 2022.

Kvertus said that Azimuth was originally developed to meet an urgent operational request (UOR) from Ukrainian troops for a system that could detect drone operators at a distance of around 14 kilometers (9 miles).

The company says that by using the Azimuth system lifted to an optimum altitude of 300-700 meters (1,000 – 2,300 feet) the detection range can be extended to 60 kilometers (37 miles) with accurate triangulation of the target’s position, while the same targets can be triangulated at a distance of 24-30 kilometers (15-19 miles).

According to Aerobavovna its helium-filled aerostat can carry a 25-kilogram (55-pound) payload and is able to remain aloft for 7 days without the need for any maintenance or gas refill.

Kvertus says the passive nature of the Azimuth detection equipment and the fabric of the Aerobavovna balloon presents a tiny radar signature; combined with very limited movement, it creates difficulty for the enemy to detect and target the system electronically. Still, they accept that it is possible the balloon could be visually detected and attacked.

The big advantage of the Aero Azmiuth, which is relatively expensive would be the ability to provide 24/7 coverage over a relatively wide area particularly if several were used in parallel and in combination combined with other ground sensors and reconnaissance assets. On the ground, the Aero Azmiuth would form part of a system that provides even more extensive coverage as well as offering more resilience, with the loss of an individual sensor node being less significant.

The threat posed by UAV swarms – particularly of first-person view (FPV) kamikaze drones, for which Ukraine is outnumbered by the Russians – remains a challenge. While Ukraine has weapons to attack individual drones, Ukraine has insufficient numbers to prevent many getting through. The additional means of countering enemy drones such as that presented by the Aero Azimuth, which targets individual operators or command posts from where dozens of drones are controlled, will help redress the balance on the battlefield.

This, in turn, would force Russian drone operators to change their tactics and make more frequent changes of position to avoid giving their presence away, which in turn would limit the amount of time their drones would be in the air.

The use of balloons by both sides in the war in Ukraine is not new. Aerobavovna balloons have reportedly already been used for reconnaissance, signal relay, drone control, and delivery of explosive charges by the AFU.

Russia has a long history of reconnaissance balloons equipped with radar and surveillance equipment being used in Ukraine, but also to monitor its borders with Finland and the Baltic states.