The ever-increasing role of drones in modern warfare – Tonio Galea

The recent developments in the Persian Gulf have once more caused widespread repercussions in the world. Among the various aspects that these brought to the world’s attention is the ever-increasing use of weaponised drones or unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs).

A relatively new weapon so to speak – the first verified use of a drone in warfare was in the early hours of October 2001 on the first night of the Afghan War – and vary from the expensive to the cheap – the US military’s RQ-4A Global Hawk is estimated to cost around €110 million –  with a far-reaching consequences.

Some months ago, the world witnessed the effectiveness of drones put to malicious effect when Gatwick and Heathrow airport were brought to a standstill due to unauthorised drones flying over the airport grounds. A situation that was quickly remedied as they were blocked by what was reported to be signal jamming. In comparison with the high-tech military drones, these were relatively cheap and small. Basically, drones one can buy from any toyshop or order on-line.

From their use in Afghanistan way back in 2001, drones have come along way. As regards the US military, they have seen action in Iraq, North Africa, the Asia-Pacific region and Afghanistan.

They have become the weapon of choice of the US military in taking out terrorists in various parts of the globe, namely Yemen, Somalia and Libya.

From being the domain of advanced military nations like the US, drones have come a long way.

The offensive use of drones has grown significantly in recent years, and nowhere more so than in the Middle East. This has mainly been due to the manufacture by China of cheaper versions of military drones with the weaponry ending up to at least half a dozen governments in the Middle East and the civilian UAV market that has become more sophisticated, and the technology has been converted into combat drones.

In the recent developments in the Arabian Peninsula, Iran has played a key role in transferring relatively advanced drone technology to several non-state actors, such as the Houthi rebels in Yemen. Lately the conflict in Libya saw a surge in the use of military drones used by the opposing sides with the Chinese manufactured Wing Loong 1 UAV by the forces under the command of Khalifa Haftar and Turkish Bayraktar TB2 drones by the government of national accord based in Tripoli.

As of 2018 nine other countries have developed or acquired armed drones, with others developing their own drone programs. Non-state groups, like ISIS, have also acquired armed drones with experts predicting that drone capabilities will rise dramatically in the coming years.

Tonio Galea, heads the GeoPolitical research unit of CiConsulta and Editor of Corporate Dispatch.