Over the past year, anti-aircraft drones have become another relatively inexpensive way to counter the threat posed by long-range strike drones such as the Shahed/Geran-2, Gerbera decoys, and other derivatives.
One such anti-aircraft drone is Sting from the Wild Hornets workshop, which the Defense Forces of Ukraine began using this year to counter russian strike drones.
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According to Financial Times, Alex Roslin, a representative of Wild Hornets, stated that in less than five months, 600 drones were shot down using Sting interceptor drones. [The first video of a downed Gerbera was posted on the workshop's Telegram on May 13 this year, and the first video of a downed Shahed was posted on May 19.]
Wild Hornets previously highlighted the effectiveness of their Sting anti-aircraft drones against Shahed and Gerbera drones, achieving success rates of 60–90% depending on crew experience and other factors.
At the same time, Roslin emphasizes that in order to successfully counter attack drones, three interceptors must be deployed to take down one UAV. In other words, achieving 600 shoot-downs requires launching at least 1,800 interceptors to maintain a high interception success rate. However, according to Wild Hornets, "Sting drones have an effectiveness of over 70%."
Considering the announced cost of the Sting interceptor at $2,100, shooting down one Shahed would require purchasing $6,300 worth of interceptors, which is significantly less than other means.
It should be noted that this refers to the basic cost of interceptors, which does not include other aspects that remain behind the scenes, such as target detection capabilities, drone operator training, etc.
Despite these nuances, interceptor drones are emerging as an important element of multi-layered air defense. As Roslin notes, Wild Hornets are rapidly expanding production of their Sting anti-aircraft drones.
Earlier, Defense Express reported that the Wild Hornets had accelerated their Sting anti-aircraft drone to over 315 km/h.
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