In first, British Army uses radio-wave weapon to knock out drone swarm

PARIS — The British Army successfully tested a radio-wave weapon to knock out drone swarms, as militaries look for new ways to neutralize what has become one of the biggest threats on the modern battlefield.

The Army was able to defeat drone swarms for the first time in the latest trial of the weapon-system demonstrator, the Ministry of Defence said in a statement on Thursday. The weapon, developed by a consortium led by Thales UK, uses high-frequency radio waves to fry drone internals, disrupting or damaging critical electronic components and causing the drones to crash or malfunction.

Soldiers from 106 Regiment Royal Artillery took down two swarms of drones in a single engagement using the weapon, and more than 100 drones were immobilized across all trials, the MoD said. The radio-frequency, directed-energy weapon was capable of neutralizing multiple drone targets simultaneously with near-instant effect, it said.

The U.K. has invested more than £40 million (US$53 million) into research and development of the radio-wave weapons to date, it said. With an estimated cost of 10 pence per shot fired, “if developed into operational service it could provide a cost-effective complement to traditional missile-based air defense systems,” the government said.

Radio-frequency directed energy weapon systems can defeat airborne targets at ranges of up to 1 kilometer (0.62 mile), and are effective against targets that can’t be jammed using electronic warfare, according to the government.

Such systems could help protect security-sensitive areas such as defense bases from unidentified drones, as well as play a role in preventing disruption at airports, the government said. Drone sightings have caused airport shutdowns around the world in recent years.

The British Army tested a drone-frying weapon Air Defence Range Manorbier, a live-firing range in south-west Wales, in April 2025. (British MOD)

The demonstrator weapon was quick to learn and easy to use, according to testimony from Sgt. Mayers, a senior remotely-piloted air systems operator from 106 Regiment Royal Artillery, who made history as the first British soldier to bring down drones using a radio-frequency weapon.

The trail was conducted at Air Defence Range Manorbier, a live-firing range in south-west Wales. The purpose of the project is to develop a weapon that allows the Army to test the integration challenges and operational challenges of fielding a radio-frequency, directed-energy weapon system, or RF DEW, the government said.

Thales have around 100 engineering and manufacturing staff in Northern Ireland working on the project, with another 30 to 35 supply chain jobs in Essex in east England, according to the MoD.

“Thales continues to be at the forefront of this pioneering technology, and we are proud to continue the research and development in this sector alongside our partners in government,” said Nigel MacVean, managing director of Thales Integrated Airspace-protection Systems.

The MoD said it’s working with a range of industry partners to provide U.K. forces with future RF DEW capabilities.

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——英国陆军成功测试了一种无线电波武器，用于击落无人机群。各国军队都在寻找新的方法来消除无人机群，因为无人机已成为现代战场上最大的威胁之一。

英国国防部周四发表声明称，在最新一次武器系统演示试验中，陆军首次成功击落无人机群。该武器由泰雷兹英国公司牵头的联合体研发，利用高频无线电波干扰无人机内部，破坏或干扰关键电子元件，导致无人机坠毁或故障。

英国国防部表示，皇家炮兵第106团的士兵在一次交战中使用该武器击落了两群无人机，所有试验中共有超过100架无人机被瘫痪。国防部还称，这种射频定向能武器能够同时摧毁多个无人机目标，且几乎瞬间生效。

英国政府表示，迄今为止，已在无线电波武器的研发方面投入超过4000万英镑（约合5300万美元）。政府称，这种武器每次发射的成本估计为10便士，“如果投入实战应用，它将成为传统导弹防空系统的一种经济有效的补充。”

据政府称，射频定向能武器系统可以摧毁1公里（0.62英里）范围内的空中目标，并且对无法用电子战干扰的目标也有效。

政府表示，此类系统有助于保护国防基地等安全敏感区域免受不明无人机的攻击，并能在防止机场运营中断方面发挥作用。近年来，无人机目击事件已导致世界各地机场关闭。

2025年4月，英国陆军在位于威尔士西南部的马诺比尔防空靶场（一个实弹射击靶场）测试了一种无人机拦截武器。（英国国防部）

据皇家炮兵第 106 团高级遥控飞行系统操作员梅耶斯中士作证，演示武器上手快、易于使用。他创造了历史，成为第一个使用射频武器击落无人机的英国士兵。

此次试验在威尔士西南部的马诺比尔防空靶场进行，该靶场为实弹射击靶场。政府表示，该项目的目的是研发一种武器，使陆军能够测试部署射频定向能武器系统（RF DEW）所面临的集成挑战和作战挑战。

据英国国防部称，泰雷兹公司在北爱尔兰有大约 100 名工程和制造人员参与该项目，在英格兰东部的埃塞克斯郡还有 30 至 35 个供应链岗位。

泰雷兹综合空域保护系统总经理奈杰尔·麦克维恩表示：“泰雷兹将继续处于这项开创性技术的前沿，我们很自豪能够与政府合作伙伴一起继续在该领域进行研究和开发。”

英国国防部表示，正在与一系列行业合作伙伴合作，为英国军队提供未来的射频定向能武器能力。

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。