The Defense Acquisition Program Administration is initiating the development of a tank-mounted jammer to counter suicide drones.
On April 10, the Defense Acquisition Program Administration held a written meeting of the Rapid Demonstration Project Promotion Committee, selecting the “Intelligent Electronic Warfare-based Counter-Drone System” as the first rapid demonstration project for 2025.
This project was finalized after expert reviews based on military necessity and technological feasibility, following a call for ideas from industry, academia, and research institutes conducted from September to October 2024.
The selected project will undergo bidding in May of this year to determine the implementing agency, commence by the end of the year, undergo two years of research and development, and produce a prototype. Actual military deployment is expected to begin with demonstration operations in 2028.
The system will be equipped with a jamming device using electromagnetic waves on tanks to neutralize the remote control and navigation signals of drones. It is particularly capable of disabling suicide drones engaging in rapid vertical descent maneuvers.
The system detects remote control signals in all directions and, if deemed a threat, automatically executes radio jamming. The jammer serves to sever control and disrupt the location information of enemy drones to halt attacks.
While there have been anti-drone weapon systems defending specific areas, this project allows individual tanks to autonomously respond to drone threats.
Han Kyung-ho, head of the Future Power Program Division at the Defense Acquisition Program Administration, stated, “We hope this selection serves as a turning point in securing practical defense measures against drone threats,” further adding, “We will continue to swiftly apply innovative civilian technologies to the military.”