A UK-designed missile being used extensively by Ukrainian forces is getting a new delivery method: A giant quadcopter drone able to carry 300kg (661 lbs) while maintaining a range of 30km (18 miles).
The new system combines the T-650 drone developed by British arms manufacturer BAE Systems and Malloy Aeronautics with the UK's Brimstone II precision missiles, which carry a 6.3kg payload and have a range of up to 60 km (37 miles).
According to reports from the DVD defense conference last week, BAE plans to equip its drones with three Brimstone II missiles, which weigh in at 50kg a piece, and reach the upper limit of their range when fired from the air instead of a ground-based launcher.
The missiles are particularly deadly due to their dual-homing capabilities: They can find their own targets by detecting mmwave radar signals and also be laser-guided to targets. While the payload on a Brimstone II is much smaller than the similarly-designed US Hellfire missile, the lighter weight allows the Brimstone to reach far higher speeds and be fired from faster aircraft.
MBDA, which manufactures Brimstone missiles and other equipment for the UK Military, also previewed new surface-launched capabilities of its missile system at DVD, showing off launchers able to fire up to eight missiles. For its demonstrations, the Brimstone launchers were attached to a Boxer armored military vehicle and a light-weight Supacat high-mobility vehicle.
MBDA said it is developing the Brimstone into a "one missile, multi-platform" system, but in some instances front-line fighters haven't been waiting for defense industry innovations to make it to Ukrainian battle lines.
The UK government has sent Brimstone missiles to Ukraine, and intends to send more. With advanced military hardware designed for Brimstone launchers effectively still in development, Ukrainian soldiers have been turning civilian vehicles into makeshift military trucks known as "technicals," many of which are outfitted with Brimstone launchers.
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Missiles launched from drones are a different ballgame, with most unmanned aerial vehicles used by both sides in the Ukraine war designed not to deliver missiles, but spot targets for artillery strikes – a job traditionally done by humans and among the most hazardous military occupations.
Ukrainian forces have also reportedly made wide use of kamikaze drones: Cheap, off-the-shelf hardware able to handle a large enough bundle of explosives to make it into a remote-control bomb.
Whether precision air-to-ground Brimstone strikes will be hitting Ukrainian battle fields soon remains unknown. There doesn't appear to be an official timetable for the release of the T-650 or its missile-equipped loadout. When the T-650 was previewed last year a BAE representative said that it hoped to have the craft available for customers by 2023. ®
