Dutch army to equip its soldiers with personal drone-protection kits

PARIS — The Royal Netherlands Army plans to equip its soldiers with personal drone-protection gear, including targeting lasers and portable sensors, in an effort to counter the threat of small unmanned aircraft systems that has transformed battlefields .

The war in Ukraine and developments in the Middle East show the drone threat is acute, and Dutch troops currently lack the requisite equipment to effectively protect themselves, State Secretary for Defence Gijs Tuinman wrote in a letter to parliament last week. Given the urgency, the Defence Ministry is looking to buy anti-drone kit in the first quarter of 2025.

Russian and Ukrainian troops battle under a constant buzz of drones that observe any movement, while first-person-view drones target individual soldiers on the move, in foxholes or through the hatches of armored vehicles. While Western armies are unfamiliar with such fighting conditions, they are rushing to adapt.

“Military personnel may increasingly face attacks or unwanted reconnaissance using small unmanned systems, including drones,” Tuinman wrote in his letter. “The ability to take out UAS is essential to the security of our military and the missions and tasks they perform.”

While the Netherlands is turning to layered air-defense systems for larger drones, combating small and inexpensive drones with such systems is neither efficient nor effective, according to Tuinman. Instead, soldiers mostly rely on personal weapons or standard weapon systems, with “limited” hit probability due to drones’ small size, high speed and ability to hover, he said.

The Dutch defense department plans to spend between €50 million and €250 million to buy the personal anti-drone kit. Envisioned technologies include electro-optical aiming devices for personal weapons, such as targeting lasers, which would significantly increase targeting accuracy against small drones at a distance of 200 meters.

Other kit includes portable jammers to disrupt drone signals, and portable radio-frequency sensors that allow for earlier spotting of a possible drone threat. Experiments with C-UAS assets show that there’s no one single asset that will effectively address the threat of small drones, Tuinman said.

The higher accuracy using the aiming aids will “significantly” reduce ammo use to combat drone threats, while portable jammers make it possible to combat the threat by alternative means, according to the letter.

The Dutch plan to buy off-the-shelf equipment, and several suitable systems exist on the market, according to Tuinman. The ministry declined to provide details on which companies might supply the equipment.

The defense department will look at what options are available to acquire the capability as soon as possible, with the aim of signing a contract to buy the equipment in February or March, and the first deliveries in the following months, and continuing through to 2028.

The Netherlands will initially focus on equipping its units deployed near the front, including NATO’s eastern borders. Russian drones have violated the airspace of NATO allies several times recently, and soldiers may be confronted with drones conducting attacks or gathering intelligence during missions or exercises, Tuinman said.

With the rapid development of both drones and countermeasures, the ministry expects any assets it’s buying for so-called “extended all-arms air defense” to have an operational lifespan of no more than 10 years, and it plans to keep budget in reserve to replace the anti-drone equipment.

The Netherlands in September organized a NATO counter-UAS exercise , in which 19 allies and three partner nations including Ukraine tested more than 60 systems and technologies to detect and neutralize drones, including jammers and sensors.

The user base of such equipment is growing, with Belgium recently establishing a framework contract through the NATO Support and Procurement Agency for portable jammers and sensors, while Germany and the U.K. are buying electro-optical targeting assets, according to Tuinman.

Rudy Ruitenberg is a Europe correspondent for Defense News. He started his career at Bloomberg News and has experience reporting on technology, commodity markets and politics.

巴黎——荷兰皇家陆军计划为其士兵配备个人无人机防护装备，包括瞄准激光器和便携式传感器，以应对小型无人机系统带来的威胁，这种威胁已经改变了战场。

乌克兰战争和中东局势的发展表明，无人机威胁十分严峻，荷兰军队目前缺乏有效保护自身所需的装备。国防国务秘书吉斯·图因曼上周在致议会的一封信中写道。鉴于形势紧迫，国防部计划在2025年第一季度采购反无人机装备。

俄乌军队在无人机的持续监视下作战，这些无人机时刻监视着任何动静，而第一人称视角无人机则瞄准行进中的单个士兵，无论是在战壕里还是透过装甲车的舱门。西方军队虽然不熟悉这种作战环境，但正在加紧适应。

图伊曼在信中写道：“军事人员可能越来越容易遭受使用小型无人系统（包括无人机）的攻击或未经授权的侦察。摧毁无人机系统的能力对于我们军队的安全以及他们执行的任务至关重要。”

图因曼表示，虽然荷兰正在转向使用多层防空系统来对抗大型无人机，但用这类系统对抗小型且价格低廉的无人机既不高效也不有效。他指出，士兵们主要依靠个人武器或标准武器系统，但由于无人机体积小、速度快且具备悬停能力，命中概率“有限”。

荷兰国防部计划斥资5000万至2.5亿欧元采购个人反无人机装备。设想中的技术包括用于个人武器的光电瞄准装置，例如激光瞄准器，这将显著提高200米范围内对小型无人机的瞄准精度。

其他装备包括用于干扰无人机信号的便携式干扰器，以及能够更早发现潜在无人机威胁的便携式射频传感器。图因曼表示，反无人机系统（C-UAS）的实验表明，没有任何单一装备能够有效应对小型无人机的威胁。

信中指出，使用瞄准辅助设备可以提高精度，从而“显著”减少对抗无人机威胁所需的弹药消耗，而便携式干扰器则可以采用其他方式对抗这种威胁。

据图因曼称，荷兰计划采购现成的设备，市场上已有几种合适的系统。但该部拒绝透露哪些公司可能提供这些设备。

国防部将研究有哪些方案可以尽快获得该能力，目标是在二月或三月签署购买该设备的合同，并在接下来的几个月内进行首次交付，直至 2028 年。

荷兰将首先集中精力装备部署在前线附近的部队，包括北约东部边界的部队，图伊曼表示。俄罗斯无人机近期多次侵犯北约盟国领空，士兵在执行任务或演习期间可能会遭遇无人机发动攻击或收集情报。

随着无人机和反制措施的快速发展，国防部预计其为所谓的“扩展全军防空”而购买的任何资产的使用寿命不会超过 10 年，并计划保留预算以更换反无人机设备。

荷兰在 9 月份组织了一次北约反无人机系统演习，19 个盟国和包括乌克兰在内的 3 个伙伴国家测试了 60 多种用于探测和摧毁无人机的系统和技术，包括干扰器和传感器。

据 Tuinman 称，此类设备的用户群正在不断扩大，比利时最近通过北约支持和采购局签订了一份框架合同，用于采购便携式干扰器和传感器，而德国和英国正在购买光电瞄准设备。

鲁迪·鲁伊滕贝格是《防务新闻》的欧洲记者。他的职业生涯始于彭博新闻社，拥有报道科技、大宗商品市场和政治方面的经验。