Army air defense systems deploy to the Arctic, Africa for first time
The Army's newest air defense platform recently conducted its first live fire in the Arctic alongside NATO allies while another air defense unit deployed the Avenger Air Defense System in Africa for the first time.
The Sgt. STOUT vehicle, formerly known as Maneuver Short-Range Air Defense, or M-SHORAD, consists of a Stryker vehicle with mounted Stinger missiles, onboard radar and a 30mm cannon.
Soldiers with the 5th Battalion, 4th Air Defense Artillery Regiment, joined NATO allies for Exercise Formidable Shield 2025 in the Arctic Circle near Andoya, Norway, according to an Army release.
Air defenders engaged target drones simulating low-altitude threats over several late-night live-fire events, both from the Sgt. STOUT and dismounted from the vehicle.
The skies are no longer safe, these soldiers are preparing to defend them
Formidable Shield included 16 warships, 27 aircraft and eight ground units from 11 NATO and partner nations between May 6-9. Primarily an integrated air and missile defense exercise that began a decade ago as a naval missile defense exercise, the event has added ground-based air defense assets in response to real-world combat lessons from the Russia-Ukraine War.
Norwegian SHORAD crews on Andoya Island served as the final protective layer for forces during the exercise, destroying any threats that may have made it past naval defenses in the Norwegian Sea.
The Sgt. STOUT is designed to intercept drones, helicopters and cruise missiles, which overlaps with ship-based and high-altitude interceptors NATO forces operate.
'Our radar here can only see so far, but we push what we see to the network, and the ships that maybe can't see over here get early warning,' said Maj. Ben Bowman, battalion operations officer, in the release. 'Likewise, they can see a track further out than we can, so we have a heads-up that something's coming a lot earlier and that just gives us the edge.'
Norwegian forces operated the National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile System and the Norwegian Mobile Air Defense System.
U.S. Marines from Marine Air Control Group 28 sent teams with shoulder-launched Stinger missiles and operated a tactical air operations center, according to the release.
'When they see a different ship each night with different drones, different air forces or [ground-based air defense] defending or attacking, it makes it complex for them,' said Cmdr. Fridtjof Joys of the Royal Norwegian Navy.
Meanwhile, some 3,500 miles away in Ben Ghilouf, Tunisia, soldiers with the 1st Battalion, 57th Air Defense Regiment, 52nd Air Defense Artillery Brigade, 10th Army Air and Missile Defense Command, achieved another air defense milestone with the first-ever deployment of the Avenger Air Defense System in Africa.
The Avenger includes eight Stinger missiles mounted on a Humvee for mobile air defense.
The system was deployed as part of this year's African Lion exercise, an annual exercise on the continent featuring dozens of nations. This year's exercise takes place through Friday across Ghana, Morocco, Senegal and Tunisia.
'By integrating our systems with those of our allies, we ensure that any potential adversary faces a unified, technologically advanced defense,' said Col. Haileyesus Bairu, the 52nd Air Defense Artillery Brigade commander, in the release. 'This makes it far more difficult for hostile forces to threaten the United States or our partners.'
U.S. Army Southern European Task Force, Africa, led the exercise on behalf of the U.S. Africa Command.
'We leave this exercise more prepared, more confident, and more capable than when we arrived,' said Command Sgt. Maj Charles Robinson, 52d Air Defense Artillery Brigade senior enlisted adviser, in the release. 'That's the true measure of success for us, and it's what keeps our homeland safe.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
The US's most advanced Apache attack helicopter is losing its battlefield edge
A US Army official said the Apache helicopter faces threats that may reduce its battlefield prowess. Lt. Gen. Joseph Ryan said the older Apache AH-64D is no longer a "war-winning capability." Efforts are focused on upgrading the latest Echo model to integrate it with drone technology. The US's formidable Apache attack helicopter is increasingly under threat on future battlefields, a top US Army official said this week. Lt. Gen. Joseph Ryan, the US Army's deputy chief of staff for operations, plans, and training, described how and why the Army is phasing out older versions of the Apache, and modernizing the most recent variant. The older AH-64D, which is now into its third decade of service, "is not a war-winning capability that we can fight with and win today," Ryan said at a conference at the Center for a New American Security. The Delta model has also become prohibitively expensive to fly and operate, he added. Even the most recent upgrades to the AH-64E — the most advanced Apache helicopter — "are also on the cusp of being capabilities where we don't necessarily see them contributing to the fight the way they have done perhaps in the past," Ryan said. Apache attack helicopters have the speed and firepower to destroy an enemy's fortified positions or to rout an ambush on friendly positions, but they are increasingly threatened by the proliferation of accurate air defenses. First introduced into Army service in 1986, the Apache has long been one of the most — or even the most — feared multi-role attack helicopters. Armed with a 30mm chain gun and Hellfire anti-tank missiles, Apaches dominated the battlefields in Iraq and Afghanistan. However, upgraded air defenses and cyber tactics capable of interfering with the Apache's complex digital systems may end its reign as an apex predator that can support ground forces. Meanwhile, although the Apache's Hellfire missiles have successfully taken down drones in exercises, drones have also been known to return the compliment. Either way, the shift towards uncrewed systems has prompted a rethink of the helicopter's dominance overall. At the CNAS conference, Ryan alluded to a recent classified call between top military brass that gave a bleak picture of how comparable Ukrainian and Russian helicopters had fared in Ukraine. "I'll leave it to your imagination about the effectiveness of those platforms on the battlefield over there today," he said, but added, "Extremely limited. Extremely limited." This would include the Russian Kamov Ka-52 "Alligator" — long considered a close rival to the Apache — which, despite its advancements, has been repeatedly shot down. Both sides are armed with modern air defenses that have limited the operations of helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft, turning the war into a slug-it-out ground fight that plays to Russia's numerical advantages in soldiers and artillery. Open-source intelligence site Oryx has identified 64 Ka-52s damaged or destroyed since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Ryan's statements came amid an efficiency drive at the Pentagon aimed at building what Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth called "a leaner, more lethal force." In April, Hegseth directed Pentagon leadership to take on a wide-ranging transformation of the armed forces, including moving to "reduce and restructure manned attack helicopter formations and augment with inexpensive drone swarms capable of overwhelming adversaries." At the CNAS conference, Ryan said that "we just simply spread ourselves too thin, and now we're making a bold correction again." As part of this, the retirement of Delta-model Apaches is being accelerated, with only the latest Echo model being focused on for modernization. Personnel tasked with maintaining and flying the older aircraft are to be transferred to the newer formations, in what will be a welcome staffing boost, Ryan said. The AH-64E features more powerful engines as well as flares designed to fool heat-seeking missiles. Nonetheless, according to manufacturer Boeing, demand for the latest Apache variant remains strong worldwide, and efforts to make it work more closely with drones, known as Manned-Unmanned Teaming, or MUM-T, have been underway for a decade. Read the original article on Business Insider
Business Insider
2 hours ago
- Business Insider
The US's most advanced Apache attack helicopter is losing its battlefield edge
A US Army official said the Apache helicopter faces threats that may reduce its battlefield prowess. Lt. Gen. Joseph Ryan said the older Apache AH-64D is no longer a "war-winning capability." Efforts are focused on upgrading the latest Echo model to integrate it with drone technology. The US's formidable Apache attack helicopter is increasingly under threat on future battlefields, a top US Army official said this week. Lt. Gen. Joseph Ryan, the US Army's deputy chief of staff for operations, plans, and training, described how and why the Army is phasing out older versions of the Apache, and modernizing the most recent variant. The older AH-64D, which is now into its third decade of service, "is not a war-winning capability that we can fight with and win today," Ryan said at a conference at the Center for a New American Security. The Delta model has also become prohibitively expensive to fly and operate, he added. Even the most recent upgrades to the AH-64E — the most advanced Apache helicopter — "are also on the cusp of being capabilities where we don't necessarily see them contributing to the fight the way they have done perhaps in the past," Ryan said. Apache attack helicopters have the speed and firepower to destroy an enemy's fortified positions or to rout an ambush on friendly positions, but they are increasingly threatened by the proliferation of accurate air defenses. Ukraine battlefield issues First introduced into Army service in 1986, the Apache has long been one of the most — or even the most — feared multi-role attack helicopters. Armed with a 30mm chain gun and Hellfire anti-tank missiles, Apaches dominated the battlefields in Iraq and Afghanistan. However, upgraded air defenses and cyber tactics capable of interfering with the Apache's complex digital systems may end its reign as an apex predator that can support ground forces. Meanwhile, although the Apache's Hellfire missiles have successfully taken down drones in exercises, drones have also been known to return the compliment. Either way, the shift towards uncrewed systems has prompted a rethink of the helicopter's dominance overall. At the CNAS conference, Ryan alluded to a recent classified call between top military brass that gave a bleak picture of how comparable Ukrainian and Russian helicopters had fared in Ukraine. "I'll leave it to your imagination about the effectiveness of those platforms on the battlefield over there today," he said, but added, "Extremely limited. Extremely limited." This would include the Russian Kamov Ka-52 "Alligator" — long considered a close rival to the Apache — which, despite its advancements, has been repeatedly shot down. Both sides are armed with modern air defenses that have limited the operations of helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft, turning the war into a slug-it-out ground fight that plays to Russia's numerical advantages in soldiers and artillery. Open-source intelligence site Oryx has identified 64 Ka-52s damaged or destroyed since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Upgrading the Apache Ryan's statements came amid an efficiency drive at the Pentagon aimed at building what Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth called "a leaner, more lethal force." In April, Hegseth directed Pentagon leadership to take on a wide-ranging transformation of the armed forces, including moving to "reduce and restructure manned attack helicopter formations and augment with inexpensive drone swarms capable of overwhelming adversaries." At the CNAS conference, Ryan said that "we just simply spread ourselves too thin, and now we're making a bold correction again." As part of this, the retirement of Delta-model Apaches is being accelerated, with only the latest Echo model being focused on for modernization. Personnel tasked with maintaining and flying the older aircraft are to be transferred to the newer formations, in what will be a welcome staffing boost, Ryan said. The AH-64E features more powerful engines as well as flares designed to fool heat-seeking missiles. Nonetheless, according to manufacturer Boeing, demand for the latest Apache variant remains strong worldwide, and efforts to make it work more closely with drones, known as Manned-Unmanned Teaming, or MUM-T, have been underway for a decade.
Yahoo
5 hours ago
- Yahoo
A US Navy sailor walked BI through what it was like shooting down a small drone with a .50 caliber machine gun
A US Navy sailor used a .50 caliber machine gun to shoot down a small drone last month. The engagement came during a major NATO exercise focused on naval air defense. It underscores how drones are increasingly becoming a key element of maritime warfare. Petty Officer Second Class Brian Diaz saw the small drone coming in through his binoculars. The US Navy sailor quickly called in the threat and got the go-ahead to open fire on it with his deck-mounted M2 Browning .50 caliber machine gun. A hundred rounds went out in a flash. They found their target, and Diaz, a gunner's mate, scored a direct hit on the drone, sending it crashing into the chilly Atlantic waters below. Sailors on the Arleigh Burke-class destroyer USS Thomas Hudner erupted in cheers. The drone that Diaz shot down with his machine gun did not belong to a real enemy, but the exercise was serious all the same, simulating a threat that warships like the Thomas Hudner could face in the future, as drones are finding a greater role in naval warfare. "Being able to go through the motions just gives me peace of mind, that I know I can do it, come the need to do it," Diaz shared with Business Insider during a recent visit to Thomas Hudner that came on the heels of the warship's participation in NATO's Formidable Shield 25 exercise last month. Formidable Shield is Europe's largest live-fire naval exercise and a key opportunity for allies to train for a variety of air defense scenarios. For the Thomas Hunder, the drills included missile and drone engagements. One day, toward the end of the exercise, a handful of NATO warships lined up to face off against different defense scenarios. Diaz was on watch with the .50 caliber, looking out over the water and waiting for instructions to come through on the radio. Diaz said that his first engagement that day was a remote-controlled boat, simulating an uncrewed surface vessel. It was pretty far out, and he could barely see it. Thomas Hunder engaged with all its weapons systems: the large five-inch deck gun, the Mark 38 machine gun system, and the .50 caliber. Eventually, the five-inch gun hit it. It was later that day that he fought the flying drone, a small quadcopter system. Other warships called in the threat to Thomas Hunder. Diaz recalled that he couldn't see it at first, but eventually, the team spotted the threat and marked it as a contact. The drone started to get closer, at one point 200 meters (650 feet) out, getting well within range of the .50 caliber. Diaz asked for permission from a superior to engage the drone before opening fire alongside another sailor operating a second M2 Browning. "We're both shooting," Diaz said. "Boom, boom, boom, boom, boom." At one point, the other sailor paused to reload. That's when Diaz made the kill. "I think I shot the wing off," Diaz said. "What it does is, it's flying, and it's just sitting there, and it just — donk!" he explained. "There's a little sway, and it's straight into the water." Drones of this size, often just a few inches or a foot in length, are incredibly difficult to shoot down because they're so small and can move erratically in the air. Diaz said he was nervous during the engagement, but the successful hit got the crew fired up. Cdr. Cameron Ingram, Thomas Hunder's commanding officer, told BI that some of the crewmembers were watching Diaz from the bridge wing at the time, wondering whether he would be able to take down the drone. "And then he clips it, and it falls," Ingram said. "The whole bridge wing explodes with excitement," he said, noting that the sailor "walks a step taller now." The exercise underscores how the US Navy is increasingly integrating counter-drone training into its planning as it absorbs lessons from the Red Sea conflict, during which the Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen regularly launched drones and missiles at military and civilian vessels operating in the area. The Houthis relied heavily on one-way attack drones like the KAS-04, or Sammad. This fixed-wing drone, which is packed with explosives and can fly long distances, is much larger than a cheap, commercially available quadcopter drone but significantly smaller than a US military MQ-9 Reaper, a well-known combat drone. US warships, including Thomas Hunder, shot down Houthi KAS-04s. The ships weren't known to have battled any Houthi quadcopters; these threats, however, are something the Navy is training for, especially considering their proliferation in other fights. During BI's visit to the Thomas Hudner, which sailed from England to France last weekend ahead of the D-Day events this week, the watch team spotted a quadcopter drone as the destroyer was setting off on its journey. They closely monitored the drone, which turned out not to pose any immediate danger to the ship. Still, the crew was ready to take action if needed. Ingram said that small quadcopters are "absolutely a threat," even if there are limitations in their capability, specifically endurance, range, and payload capacity. While these drones generally can't carry enough ordnance to effectively disable a destroyer, they could certainly hurt people and do enough damage to potentially force the warship into repairs. "I think there will probably be a desire to weaponize those things, but there are limitations," Ingram said. Destroyers like his don't operate close to the coast. An enemy would have to send the drones out several miles from the shore or have a launching platform closer to the warship. But even then, the payload wouldn't be as heavy as a Houthi KAS-04. It is possible that the ship could encounter one near port. Warships have been attacked pierside in the past, though by other threats. The Ukraine war has demonstrated the effectiveness of quadcopters, small, inexpensive first-person view (FPV) drones, in combat. They are mostly used in engagements on land, but Kyiv has at times integrated these drones into maritime operations, demonstrating that it's still possible to burden a naval force even if the desired target isn't necessarily an expensive warship. Read the original article on Business Insider
