‘Cerberus': Russia's drone swarm truck to steer 12 fiber-linked UAVs in future wars
In the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine there have been multiple advancements in drone warfare. More innovations are around the corner, and one of them is a drone swarm-managing system that relies on optical fibers.
Cerberus is a Russian military project, which intends to develop a platform which can manage six to 12 unmanned aerial vehicles. The work on it is being carried out by designers in Russia who are planning to unveil the platform by mid-2025.
As per reports, the plan is to unveil the platform in August at the 'Army 2025' forum, which will be held with the support of the Russian Ministry of Defense, in the Moscow region.
The designers from Stary Oskol are working on the Cerberus project, according to a report by the Russian independent news agency Izvestia.
The report states that the fiber optical fiber controlled drones will be likely very compact in size. They will be housed within modular compartments in the mobile platform – which will sit atop a truck chassis.
The report suggests that the first model will likely contain six to 12 drones, with the ability to launch and control them all at once. The control can be either manual or through artificial intelligence systems that will make the job of the forces a lot easier.
The AI will also make it easy for the drone swarms to function in pairs, with one carrying out intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR), while the other UAVs can attack the desired targets.
It also mentions that the drone swarms operated by AI can be used to target aircraft, fire thermal charges, and work together as an additional layer for air defense.
The Cerberus is intended to work as a base for the small UAVs. It will offer a place where drones can be stored, charged, and also act as a command center. The integration of AI will make it even more efficient – giving it a sort of 'fire and forget' kind of mechanism, with manual intervention only needed in case something goes off target.
Earlier last year, during the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war the forces from Moscow had unveiled the first fiber-optic drones.
The fiber-optic drones had been unleashed as a result of the electronic warfare techniques deployed by Ukraine. The fiber-optic drones were claimed to be resistant to radio jamming as it depended on fiber optics to communicate while in operations.
Developed by the Ushkuynik Scientific and Production Center in Novgorod, the new weapon can destroy its target without being affected by radio jamming. Details shared by the Russian military Telegram channel Siberian Army on August 18 reveal that the drone is reportedly called 'Prince Vandal of Novgorod.'
Reports had mentioned that Ukraine was also working on similar ideas and it too could field a fiber-optic UAV in the days ahead.
However, the ability to control drone swarms through fiber optics could be a bigger and better mechanism in the battlefield. It remains to be seen if the truck chassis - on which the platform sits – will itself be an unmanned variant or not.
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