Australian 'drone killer' system Slinger heading for Ukraine

#australiandrone #system #turningukraine
At the back of an industrial estate Canberra, an Australian-made response to the growing drone threat in Ukraine is full swing. A replica cannon mounted on the back a pickup truck tracks its target, part of a weapons system that launches "hard kill" attacks to knock drones out the sky. This device, called Slinger, is designed to counter drones at a cost that countries like Ukraine can afford. "We've seen this massive proliferation of drone threats in Ukraine," said Matt Jones of Electro Optic Systems, or EOS. “The problem is that the types of systems you would use to defeat drones are too expensive to defeat a $10,000 drone, or even a $1,000 drone.” Drones are playing a big role in the Ukrainian war. War in Ukraine changed forever. Drones are playing a huge role on the front lines. It is estimated that thousands of drones are in the air every day. "The speed of finding people on the battlefield, the speed of targeting and destroying them is changing tactics," said retired Australian major general Mick Ryan. "It is changing formations and will have to change military doctrines and equipment everywhere." 'It's all about cost' In a world of multimillion-dollar weapon systems, drones are the ultimate equalizer. The feared Iranian Shahed model, which Russia uses to target tanks and cities, costs about $31,000. Others are less costly. The missiles used to hit them can cost 10 times more. Russia is using Iran's Shahed drones to target tanks in Ukraine. “Until recently we had to use very expensive missiles to attack these things,” Mr. Ryan said. "If you're using a $100,000 or $200,000 missile to shoot down a $10,000 drone, that won't work in most countries." Slinger uses advanced technology to achieve a sharp result. In Canberra, EOS test engineer Charlotte Capper used a joystick to track a drone on the system's targeting screen. A joystick is used to follow the drone on the system's targeting screen. "I just make sure he stays on track, stays armed, and when we get the signal we can fire and shoot the drone down," he said. "It's very quick and easy to learn. You don't need to know too much about the technology. It's easy to see what everything does and how it does it." Last month, Ukrainian Ambassador to Australia Vasyl Myroshnychenko saw firsthand while testing how Slinger could shoot down drones at a fraction of the cost of a missile. "Sometimes these missiles cost millions. And you shoot down drones, which costs $20,000, right? And it's all about cost," Mr. Myroshnychenko said. “But you never know where that drone is aiming and what exactly it will destroy.” Slinger's price tag is less than $1.55 million per system. It aims to shoot down drones at a cost of $155 to $1,550 per conflict. Drones carrying weapons are being used more frequently in conflicts. The Ukrainian ambassador said, "Ukrainian cities are attacked by drones and missiles every day. And we have been seeing these drones for a year