US Used New Electronic Warfare Weapon To Destroy Iranian Drone: Report

The United States (US) has used its new Light Marine Air Defense Integrated System (LMADIS) anti-drone electronic warfare system to bring down the Iranian drone from its amphibious naval ship.

“The encounter is the first known kill by a new generation of electronic warfare and directed energy weapons the US has developed over the last decade to handle the daunting problem of how to counter voluminous, low-end threats without resorting to waste high-dollar missiles,” naval analyst and retired Navy officer Thomas Callender told USNI News on Friday.

On Thursday, President of the US Donald Trump announced that an USS Boxer belonging to the US Navy destroyed an Iranian drone as it was entering the Strait of Hormuz. The drone reportedly approached within 1,000 yards (914 meters) of the Boxer.

A day later, Iran broadcasted video footage to "falsify US claims of destroying the Iranian drone" in the Gulf.

The anti-drone system is portable enough to be installed on large all-terrain vehicles (ATV), such as the Polaris Defense MRZR buggy. The LMADIS is an array of several round devices that resemble cellular antennas in a circular arrangement to provide 360-degree coverage, topped with a video camera.

​The LMADIS typically consists of two buggies: a command vehicle and an electronic warfare platform. Initially designed for ground operations, the system was recently installed on several Navy ships for testing. The system uses radar and cameras to detect drones in the sky, and, once a threat is found, emits radio frequencies that jam drone control, according to the C4ISR May report.