Electromagnetic warfare or electronic warfare (EW) is warfare involving the use of the electromagnetic spectrum or directed energy to control the spectrum, attack an enemy, or impede enemy operations. The purpose of electromagnetic warfare is to deny the opponent the advantage of—and ensure friendly unimpeded access to—the EM spectrum. Electromagnetic warfare can be applied from air, sea, land, or space by crewed and uncrewed systems, and can target communication, radar, or other military and civilian assets.
A directed-energy weapon (DEW) is a ranged weapon that damages its target with highly focused energy without a solid projectile, including lasers, microwaves, particle beams, and sound beams. Potential applications of this technology include weapons that target personnel, missiles, vehicles, and optical devices.
Suppression of Enemy Air Defenses (SEAD, pronounced ), also known in the United States as "Wild Weasel" and (initially) "Iron Hand" operations, are military actions to suppress enemy surface-based air defenses, including not only surface-to-air missiles (SAMs) and anti-aircraft artillery (AAA) but also interrelated systems such as early-warning radar and command, control and communication (C3) functions, while also marking other targets to be destroyed by an air strike. Suppression can be accomplished both by physically destroying the systems or by disrupting and deceiving them through electronic warfare. In modern warfare, SEAD missions can constitute as much as 30% of all sorties launched in the first week of combat and continue at a reduced rate through the rest of a campaign. One quarter of American combat sorties in recent conflicts have been SEAD missions. Despite generally being associated with aircraft, SEAD missions may be performed using any means, including through actions by ground forces.
An electronic countermeasure (ECM) is an electrical or electronic device designed to trick or deceive radar, sonar, or other detection systems, like infrared (IR) or lasers. It may be used both offensively and defensively to deny targeting information to an enemy. The system may make many separate targets appear to the enemy, or make the real target appear to disappear or move about randomly. It is used effectively to protect aircraft from guided missiles. Most air forces use ECM to protect their aircraft from attack. It has also been deployed by military ships and recently on some advanced tanks to fool laser/IR guided missiles. It is frequently coupled with stealth advances so that the ECM systems have an easier job. Offensive ECM often takes the form of jamming. Self-protecting (defensive) ECM includes using blip enhancement and jamming of missile terminal homers.
Duga was an over-the-horizon radar (OTH) system used in the Soviet Union as part of its early-warning radar network for missile defense. It operated from July 1976 to December 1989. Two operational duga radars were deployed, with one near Chernobyl and Liubech in the Ukrainian SSR, and the other in eastern Siberia.
The ADM-160 MALD is an air-launched, expendable decoy missile developed by the United States. Later variants (MALD-J) are additionally equipped with electronic countermeasures to actively jam early warning and target acquisition radars.
Dummies and decoys are fake military equipment that are intended to deceive the enemy. Dummies and decoys are only one aspect of military deception.
The AeroVironment Switchblade is a miniature loitering munition designed by AeroVironment and used by several branches of the United States military. Small enough to fit in a backpack, the Switchblade launches from a tube, flies to the target area, and crashes into its target while detonating its explosive warhead. The name Switchblade comes from how the spring-loaded wings are folded inside a tube and flipped out once released.
Drone warfare is a form of warfare using robots. Robot types include: unmanned combat aerial vehicles (UCAV) or weaponized commercial unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV), unmanned surface vehicles, and ground based drones. The United States, United Kingdom, Israel, China, South Korea, Iran, Iraq, Italy, France, India, Pakistan, Russia, Turkey, Ukraine and Poland are known to have manufactured operational UCAVs as of 2019.
The Krasukha is a Russian mobile, ground-based, electronic warfare (EW) system. This system is produced by the KRET corporation on different wheeled platforms. The Krasukha's primary targets are airborne radio-electronics and airborne systems guided by radar. The Krasukha has multiple applications in the Russian Armed Forces.
A loitering munition, also known as a suicide drone, kamikaze drone, or exploding drone, is a kind of aerial weapon with a built-in warhead that is typically designed to loiter around a target area until a target is located, then attack the target by crashing into it. Loitering munitions enable faster reaction times against hidden targets that emerge for short periods without placing high-value platforms near the target area and also allow more selective targeting as the attack can be changed mid-flight or aborted.
The Luch Korsar is a medium-weight Russian unmanned aerial vehicle developed by OKB Luch, member of Ruselectronics owned by Rostec, to perform reconnaissance, strike and electronic attack missions on behalf of the Russian Ground Forces and Navy. The program started in 2009 and the flight testing commenced in 2015. It is considered as an improved analogue of the US-made RQ-7 Shadow UAV.
The Bukovel-AD is a Ukrainian anti-drone electronic warfare system.
Aerorozvidka is a team and NGO that promotes creating and implementing netcentric and robotic military capabilities for the security and defense forces of Ukraine. Aerorozvidka specialises in aerial reconnaissance and drone warfare. It was founded in May 2014 by a team which included Ukrainian battalion commander Natan Chazin. Its founder, Volodymyr Kochetkov-Sukach, was an investment banker who was killed in the Russo-Ukrainian War in 2015.
Repellent-1 is a Russian electronic warfare system designed to suppress the operation of unmanned aerial vehicles at a distance of up to 30 to 35 km. It weighs more than 20 tons.
UCAV Punisher is a multifunctional unmanned combat aerial vehicle (UCAV), which was developed in 2016 by Ukrainian combat veterans. Since 2019, the system has been supplied to the Ukrainian Armed Forces partially funded by individuals. UCAV Punisher has been officially contracted by the Ukrainian Armed Forces from 18.08.2023.
The ZALA Lancet is an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) and loitering munition developed by the Russian company ZALA Aero Group for the Russian Armed Forces. It was first unveiled in June 2019 at the ARMY-2019 military expo in Moscow. It is a further development of the ZALA Kub-BLA loitering munition. Iran claimed in April 2024 that it has manufactured a domestic analogue of the drone.
The R18 is a Ukrainian unmanned combat aerial vehicle designed to attack enemy targets with ammunition. It was developed by Ukrainian organization Aerorozvidka. The R18 is in service with the Security and Defense Forces of Ukraine in the Russo-Ukrainian War, which has been ongoing since 2014.
The R-330Zh Zhitel is a mobile truck-mounted electronic warfare jamming communication station, manufactured by NVP Protek and fielded by the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation (AFRF). It is preferably deployed within range of the frontline, and is mounted on a Ural-43203 or KamAZ-43114 three-axle truck.
Brave1 is a Government of Ukraine platform to bring together innovative companies with ideas and developments that can be used in the defense of Ukraine, launched on 26 April 2023.
