Posted on 03/18/2026 5:48:27 AM PDT by MtnClimber
T The solution to the Iranian drone problem may already be in the pipeline.
This involves a long-serving U.S. drone, the Raytheon Coyote. The latest version, the Block 3NK (Non-Kinetic) has demonstrated that it can knock down numerous enemy drones without ever actually striking them – and then turn around and do it again.
The first version of the Coyote originated in a 2004 requirement from the U.S. Navy’s Office of Naval Research for a small, expendable UAV to serve with the P-3 Orion antisubmarine aircraft. The drone was to be launched from the plane’s sonobuoy tubes, at which point the straight wings would unfold. Originally intended as a remote sensor platform, the 13-lb. Coyote could also be fitted with a small warhead. If utilized in swarming attacks, it was believed that the drone could cause an enemy serious headaches. It had a ceiling of 30,000 ft, a top speed of 80 mph, and had an 80-mile link range.
The first flight occurred in 2007. In short order, it was also cleared for use by ships and ground-based tube launchers. The Army and Marines ordered thousands. Clearly, the Coyote ranked as one of the most successful early drone systems.
This was reflected a decade later with the development of the Coyote Block 2, a jet-powered version with enhanced performance. The folding wings were replaced with strakes, giving it a much sleeker silhouette and discarding the model airplane look. With a top speed of 345 mph, the Block 2 was intended as an interceptor for use against hostile drones. The Block 2 can be networked with other Coyotes in order to provide an effective defense against drone attacks.
Work on a newer version began even before the Block 2 entered service.
(Excerpt) Read more at americanthinker.com ...
I bet Raytheon would donate a few prototypes to the cause.
As long as they each cost $10 million or more, we’re ALL IN! Sincerely, Military Industrial Complex
laser weapon
I hope Iran doesn’t have a ‘Roadrunner’ counter offering!
The problem is finding the drones.
A gun can be rotated to the right direction and a shrapnel shell fired off. If the shell has traveled far enough away, it can be exploded.
cost of the shell [~$100] << cost of the drone [$1,000+]
Adding a gun turret to a ship might be $20,000/turret.
Drones might be given special coatings that can tolerate laser heating.
That has a brief video that’s interesting.
Ukraine might like a few of them.
How does Helios work if visual detection is impossible (weather) ? Does it interface with ship’s radar? Can drones be detected by radar?
The new drone arena goes in the same direction as our aircraft, stealth drones like the Wraith or the Great White Bat. But with explosive payloads rather than just reconnaissance.
Microwave(Maser)
Too late for prototypes.
The war is now. Outcome will be decided long before new Wunderwaffen are produced at scale.
Interesting video. My guess is that it is a high-energy microwave weapon.
The video pointed out that the gun requires ammo and must resupply when it runs out. The laser never runs out as long as there is electrical power to the system.
Prototypes are sometimes used. I went overseas with one. It was myself and another engineer because we had both been involved in the design and we volunteered. The military flew the prototype equipment over and we flew over commercial to Bahrain and met up with the two military people that would be working with us. There was a two week window and the military wanted our equipment running constantly during the window. We only had one prototype and no spares. We worked one engineer and one military officer on two 12-hour shifts. Everything worked perfectly and we took everything apart for the military to ship back and we came home. But I stopped off in Switzerland to do some mountain climbing on the way back.
So... Raytheon is donating to “American Thinker”...
“Drones might be given special coatings that can tolerate laser heating.”
No coating ablative or mirrored is going to help a drone against a pulsed 50+ kilowatt laser. The kill mechanism is plasma shockwave. Even the best lab clean room mirror is only 99.9% reflective that 0.1% is enough to heat a surface plasma off it and the second pulse a few microseconds later drives this optically opaque plasma at hypersonic speeds into the structure of the drone. Simply put pulse lasers are immune to any surface treatments.
Even CW lasers would burn through a mirror in seconds same mechanism heat or even 0.1% absorption rapidly ruins reflectivity. Ablative coatings would work for a few seconds more but given the low airflow velocity over a drone body vs the multiple megajoules being deposited on a small surface area every the best ablative will be overwhelmed eventually. No material is going to last long against 20000+ degree temps especially when there is more heat influx vs being carried away by outgasing and conduction.
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