Global Loitering Munitions Market 2023-2033

Loitering Munitions - The Low Tech, Cost Effective New Age Killing Machine

Loitering munition is a weapon system which loiters around the target area for some time and attacks only once a target is located. Loitering munitions enable faster reaction times against concealed or hidden targets that emerge for short periods without placing high-value platforms close to the target area, and allow more selective targeting as the attack can easily be aborted.

Loitering munitions are increasingly being used by military forces around the world, as they offer several advantages over traditional munitions. For example, they can be used to strike targets in heavily defended areas, such as urban environments, where it may be difficult to use conventional munitions without risking collateral damage. Additionally, loitering munitions can be used to strike time-sensitive targets, such as enemy combatants or high-value targets, with minimal delay. The engine used in a loitering munition can vary depending on the specific design and requirements of the system. In general, loitering munitions are typically powered by small, lightweight engines that are optimized for endurance rather than speed.

In December of 2021, Iranian state media published videos of an unmanned aerial vehicle, Shahed-136, a delta-wing shaped aircraft, dubbed Kamikaze or suicide drone. Shahed-136 is a type of loitering munition, a crossover between a cruise missile and a drone. It differs from a cruise missile, in that it can loiter for a relatively long period of time around its target area, kinda like a drone.
But it is different from a drone, in that it is one-time use, because loitering munitions have warheads, like a cruise missile, and they are designed to be destroyed upon hitting their target, hence the nickname Kamikaze drone. But loitering munitions are nothing new. The US had sent hundreds of Switchblades 300 drones as part of an arms package to Ukraine.

Iran came up with a new launcher for Shahed-136. The launcher looks like a regular truck, but not only does it hide the drones during transportation, it can launch dozens of them in a swarm attack.Shahed-136 drones also have a range of 1,100 to 1,500 miles, compared to just over 6 miles for Switchblade 300. Finally, Shahed-136 drones carry a 90lb warhead, which can inflict serious damage.

The Kamikaze drones are also a challenge for traditional radars to detect, becausetheir initial flight path is often low, about 100 feet above ground, and they are fairly small, creating a modest detection signature. They increase their altitude only before diving into the ground, at which time, radar detection is too late. But even if radars could detect them, because they are so cheap to produce, a swarm of them could overwhelm anti-air defense systems. Anti-air missiles have been traditionally used to destroy aircraft or other cruise missiles, not cheap drones.

A NASMAS platoon, which includes 3 launchers for 18 missiles, a radar station and a fire control panel, costs $23 million dollars, and that’s just the setup. The variety of missiles that NASMAS can launch aren’t cheap either. For example, AIM-9 Sidewinder missiles have a unit cost in the range of 3 to $ 400,000. IRIS-T infrared homing missiles cost around 400 thousand dollars each, and a single AIM-120 AMRAAM missile costs a whopping $1.2 million dollars. This makes traditional air defense systems economically non-viable against Kamikaze drone