‘Smaller, Better, Cheaper’: The Rise of Portable Drone Interceptors

MILAN, Italy — Manufacturers of counter-drone weaponry say they are increasingly miniaturizing and simplifying their solutions to meet rising demand for man-portable weapons, as recent conflicts have accentuated the importance of mobile capabilities.

Man-portable, counter-unmanned aerial systems (C-UAS) have been around for some time, however, with the growing threat of weaponized commercial drones in recent years, their proliferation has accelerated. In a 2019 C-UAS database report compiled by the Center for the Study of the Drone at Bard College, out of 537 market products analyzed, 111 (21%) were hand-held solutions, offered by over 29 different countries.