ELTA Systems, a subsidiary of Israel Aerospace Industries, has announced the successful trialing of its anti-drone system at a number of airports in Europe, Latin America and Southeast Asia.
The demand for anti-drone solutions has increased dramatically since an incident in December 2018 when over 1,000 flights were canceled at Gatwick Airport in the U.K. after drone sightings halted all air traffic as a safety precaution over a three-day period, affecting over 140,000 passengers. Drone Guard is a drone detection, tracking, identification and disruption system which, according to the manufacturer, “features an integrated multi-layered sensor system that includes: 3D X-band radar that detects and tracks all types of drones; dedicated COMINT system that classifies the drone by its transmission (using the information to verify the target and reduce false detection rates); an EO/IR camera used to classify the detected object; and a Jammer that neutralizes and intercepts the object.”
The system has been specifically configured to operate in an airport environment and has been successfully and effectively demonstrated to a number of airport operators, proving its effectiveness as well as the capacity to operate the system without affecting an airport’s normal operating procedures. The Drone Guard has a major advantage as it is suitable to be used as a drone counter-measure at airports and populated areas through its ability to operate it in tandem with radio transmitting systems such as radars, communication systems, and others within an airport’s complex electromagnetic spectrum.
The Drone Guard radar operates in X-Band, which does not interfere with airport radars that typically operate in S-Band. In addition, according to ELTA, Drone Guard’s advanced mitigation measures can neutralize a threat with minimal interference to the airport’s surroundings.
