From the Ukraine war <\/a>and suspected drone sightings at Europe’s busiest airports<\/a> to the seizure of over 700 unauthorised drones<\/a> during the 2026 Fifa World Cup<\/a>, the skies above us and news reporting are abuzz with drones. Spanning different sizes and functions, drones<\/a> have become essential military tools and mainstays of contemporary conflicts. This is depicted<\/a> by the saturation of the Russia-Ukraine frontline “kill zone” with thousands of cheap yet deadly drones \u2013 a new combat ecosystem<\/a> that has seen troops become involved in a terrifying game of hide-and-seek.<\/p>\n The impact of military drone activity spreads far beyond the frontlines. From Ukraine’s repeated long-range drone strikes on Russian oil refineries<\/a> and logistics centres to Operation Spiderweb<\/a> \u2013 where 117 explosive-laden drones concealed in lorries<\/a> were smuggled into Russia and remotely released into airbases causing damage to 41 warplanes<\/a> \u2013 news reports continue to chart the creative deployment and devastation of weaponised drones.<\/p>\n We need your consent to load this rte-player contentWe use rte-player to manage extra content that can set cookies on your device and collect data about your activity. Please review their details and accept them to load the content.Manage Preferences<\/a><\/p>\n From RT\u00c9 Brainstorm, from toys to wars, where will you encounter drones next?<\/b><\/p>\n Recent cases include the discovery of a drone<\/a> carrying explosives next to a Ukrainian aircraft loaded with military ammunition at Leipzig airport in Germany. The drone was thwarted only by its failure to explode<\/a> on impact and was discovered four hours later by an airport bus driver<\/a>. The incident underscored the broader underlying threat of weaponised drones, prompting German interior minister Alexander Dobrindt to declare they represent a “new level of danger”<\/a>.<\/p>\n Downing drones<\/b><\/p>\n As the possibility of drone-related incidents<\/a> grows, the development of wide-ranging countermeasures<\/a> on and beyond the battlefield continues apace. Drones constitute novel threats that cannot simply nor solely be addressed with traditional defence and security systems<\/a> designed for large, fast-moving crewed aircraft. That the US Department of Defense recently launched an online counter-drone marketplace<\/a> to simplify acquiring vetted counter-drone technology \u2013 and that Nato plans to follow suit<\/a> \u2013 underscores the growth of this issue<\/a> in recent years.<\/p>\n Counter-drone systems are typically divided into two groups<\/a>: detection and tracking, and interdiction. Detection and tracking systems typically include<\/a> radar, radio-frequency, electro-optical, infrared, acoustic and combined sensor approaches. Each of these recognises the sounds and signatures of drones differently.<\/p>\n While radar offers long-range coverage, it can struggle<\/a> with tracking smaller drones. Birds, for example, can cause false positives. Similarly, while electro-optical sensors complement radar, they can require a clear line of sight<\/a>, limiting deployment locations.<\/p>\n The introduction of AI-enabled systems is also notable. These systems bridge the gap between tracking and intercepting by autonomously calculating a drone’s flight path, with supporting operators confirming engagement with the single press of a button<\/a>. Reports suggest they have been deployed<\/a> in Ukraine \u2013 a development that may come to mark<\/a> a significant intervention.<\/p>\n Interdiction<\/a> refers to interacting with or destroying drones. It includes non-kinetic approaches that disrupt or disable a drone without physical contact, as well as kinetic approaches which involve the physical interaction with or destruction of a drone.<\/p>\n We need your consent to load this rte-player contentWe use rte-player to manage extra content that can set cookies on your device and collect data about your activity. Please review their details and accept them to load the content.Manage Preferences<\/a><\/p>\n From RT\u00c9 Radio 1’s Today with David McCullagh, Senior Research Fellow in Avionics and Aircraft Systems at the University of West England in Bristol on how soldiers are learning how to hide form killer drones in the Ukraine warzone<\/b><\/p>\n Non-kinetic interdiction measures such as radio frequency and global navigation satellite system jamming can disrupt communication links. This prompts drones to hover, land or “return to home”<\/a>. But these measures run the risk of disrupting nearby external systems<\/a>, limiting their application in urban areas and near airports<\/a>.<\/p>\n The Ukraine conflict also demonstrates how such countermeasures are part of a wider game of cat-and-mouse, necessitating continuous adaptation and counter-adaptation<\/a>. Following the mass deployment of jammers attacking drone radio links, both sides adapted by deploying drones controlled by fibre-optic cables<\/a>.<\/p>\n By eliminating the radio link, this rendered jammers useless. This response became so integral that trails of cables now render the battlefield<\/a> a tangled web, requiring soldiers to navigate with greater caution.<\/p>\n We need your consent to load this rte-player contentWe use rte-player to manage extra content that can set cookies on your device and collect data about your activity. Please review their details and accept them to load the content.Manage Preferences<\/a><\/p>\n From RT\u00c9 Radio 1’s Drivetime, retired naval commander Tony Geraghty and TravelExtra.ie’s Eoghan Corry on a Gardai investigation into drones operating in a no-fly zone in Dublin during the visit of Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky to the city in December 2025<\/b><\/p>\n Kinetic or “hard-kill”<\/a> options include lasers, nets, projectiles and high-power microwaves<\/a>. They are typically understood as a last-resort countermeasure. Alongside being costly<\/a>, the destruction of drones introduces risks of falling debris and collateral damage<\/a> to people and property. Reports<\/a> from February 2026 of the US military accidentally downing of a Customs and Border Protection drone with a high-energy laser in Texas illustrate such concerns.<\/p>\n Nonetheless, British forces deployed missile systems to down over 100<\/a> Iranian-linked drones that were targeting a coalition base in Iraq earlier in 2026. US marines are also being trained to counter drones with standard-issue weapons<\/a> including shotguns, while the US Army is looking to source a cannon<\/a> for counter-drone defence.<\/p>\n Alongside since retired experiments<\/a> with birds of prey<\/a> trained to down drones, other kinetic approaches include the use of anti-drone nets and metal cages. Russian forces have added such measures to land vehicles and oil tankers as defensive layers designed to force<\/a> a detonation gap. Ukrainian soldiers have also adopted a “low-tech defence against a high-tech”<\/a> problem by pole mounting fishing nets on roadsides in frontline towns.<\/p>\n We need your consent to load this rte-player contentWe use rte-player to manage extra content that can set cookies on your device and collect data about your activity. Please review their details and accept them to load the content.Manage Preferences<\/a><\/p>\n From RT\u00c9 Radio 1, former British Army chemical and nuclear weapons expert Hamish de Bretton-Gordon and former NATO analyst Dr Patrick Bury on how drones have changed modern warfare<\/b><\/p>\n Such efforts are not limited to the battlefield. In recognition of a drone’s ability to bypass traditional control points and secure areas<\/a>, the UK government has invested in physical countermeasures at prisons. These include external netting and wires, and the reinforcing of 13,000 cell windows<\/a> with heavy-duty steel grilles at sites considered most vulnerable to drone incursions. But, while accompanied by wider site-specific legislation<\/a>, the weak and crumbling walls<\/a> of some Victorian prisons have complicated installs. Gardai have also intercepted<\/a> drones delivering what is believed to be drugs and phones into the Midlands and Portlaoise Prison complex.<\/p>\n There is no magic bullet<\/a> drone counter-measure available. Rather, layered approaches \u2013 tailored to different sites and contexts \u2013 are required. As drones and the threats accompanying them develop, so too must efforts to mount<\/a> an effective response. Follow RT\u00c9 Brainstorm on WhatsApp<\/a> and Instagram<\/a> for more stories and updates<\/b><\/p>\n Anna Jackman<\/a> is Associate Professor in Human Geography at University of Reading<\/a>. This article was originally published by The Conversation<\/a>.<\/p>\n The views expressed here are those of the author and do not represent or reflect the views of RT\u00c9<\/b><\/p>\n ![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/file-20260817-50-2k1h9e.jpg\"\/)
\nA quadcopter drone hovering near a city. Photo: Goh Rhy Yan \/ Unsplash<\/a><\/p>\n![\"The](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/1787731634_524_count.gif\"\/)
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