Electronic Weapons: Defeating Russian Electronic Warfare Systems
7th February 2024
While fighting Russian electronic warfare (EW), Ukrainian forces have developed new electronic warfare systems faster than Russia can create countermeasures or attack methods. The objective of EW is to tap into enemy electronic signals and hijack or block them while preventing the enemy from doing the same to you. The electronic signals here chiefly involve radio for communicating with or controlling UAVs (Unmanned Aerial Vehicles). These signals can be blocked by the enemy or even hijacked so the enemy can take control of your UAVs. This can be done so that the owner of the UAV doesn’t realize it until the enemy suddenly takes control and uses your UAV against you.
The same method can be used with radar to either manipulate the signal so that it makes the enemy radar user believe nothing is out there or that what the enemy radar shows is not where it actually is or that there are multiple items indicated when there is actually only one. Radar jamming has become increasingly sophisticated, and aircraft can carry a container of EW equipment, like a bomb underneath a wing. These EW pods contain a wide variety of EW options. These pods are often updated to detect and manipulate certain signals. The Americans obtained current Russian EW equipment and scrutinized them. Their findings were shared with the Ukrainians and some NATO allies.