Evolution into additional roles XM501 US prototype capable of launching LAM (loitering attack munition) This integrated the use of a drone as a baiting decoy with the attack role into one small and relatively cheap platform in comparison to the alternative wild weasel jet fighter. This allowed the attacking force to place relatively cheap munitions in place over suspected SAM sites, and to attack promptly the moment the SAM battery is visible. In the 1980s, a number of programs, such as the IAI Harpy or the AGM-136 Tacit Rainbow, integrated anti-radiation sensors into a drone or missile air frames coupled with command and control and loitering capabilities. In Israel's 1982 Operation Mole Cricket 19 various means including UAVs and air-launched Samson decoys were used over suspected SAM areas to saturate enemy SAMs and to bait them to activate their radar systems, which were then attacked by anti-radiation missiles. Thus, the SAM battery was only visible for a small period of time, during which it was also a significant threat to high-value Wild Weasel fighters. The Soviet counter-response was the use of mobile SAMs such as 2K12 Kub with intermittent use of radar. The response to the first generation of fixed installation surface-to-air missiles (SAMs) such as S-75 and S-125 was the development of the anti-radiation missile such as AGM-45 Shrike and other means to attack fixed SAM installations, as well as developing SEAD doctrines. "Unmanned Aerial Vehicles." Air Force Magazine (1988), page 87 Initial role in suppression of enemy air defense Loitering Munitions HERO (UVision Air Ltd, Israel), DSEI 2019, London The Tacit Rainbow unmanned jet aircraft being developed by Northrop to loiter on high and then swoop down on enemy radars could be called a UAV, a cruise missile, or even a standoff weapon. For instance the AGM-136 Tacit Rainbow was described in a 1988 article: IAI Harpy first-generation loitering munition for SEAD roleĮarly projects did not use the "loitering munition" nomenclature, which emerged much later they used terminology existing at the time. The Israeli IAI Harpy was produced in the late 1980s. The Iranian Ababil-1 was produced in the 1980s but its exact production date is unknown. The failed US AGM-136 Tacit Rainbow program or the 1980s initial Israeli Delilah variants are mentioned by some sources. Different sources point at different projects as originating the weapon category. Initially, loitering munitions were not referred to as such but rather as 'suicide UAVs' or 'loitering missiles'. History First development and terminology Northrop AGM-136 Tacit Rainbow on display at the National Museum of the U.S. Starting in the 2000s, loitering weapons were developed for additional roles ranging from relatively long-range strikes and fire support down to tactical, very short range battlefield systems that fit in a backpack. Loitering weapons first emerged in the 1980s for use in the Suppression of Enemy Air Defenses (SEAD) role against surface-to-air missiles (SAMs) and were deployed in that role with a number of military forces in the 1990s. As such, they can also be considered a nontraditional ranged weapon.Īn Iranian HESA Shahed 136 long range loitering munition They differ from cruise missiles in that they are designed to loiter for a relatively long time around the target area, and from UCAVs in that a loitering munition is intended to be expended in an attack and has a built-in warhead. Loitering munitions fit in the niche between cruise missiles and unmanned combat aerial vehicles (UCAVs or combat drones), sharing characteristics with both. Loitering munitions enable faster reaction times against hidden targets that emerge for short periods without placing high-value platforms near the target area and also allow more selective targeting as the attack can be changed mid-flight or aborted. A loitering munition (also known as a suicide drone, kamikaze drone, or exploding drone) is a kind of aerial weapon with a built-in munition ( warhead), which can loiter (wait passively) around the target area until a target is located it then attacks the target by crashing into it.
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