"A Ukrainian surprise drone attack inside Russia earlier this year - an asymmetric success dubbed Operation Spiderweb - is forcing the US Air Force to rethink how it protects its bombers and bases from the threat of drones. At a talk on Wednesday organized by the Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies think tank, Lt. Gen. Andrew Gabara, deputy chief of staff for strategic deterrence and nuclear integration for the Air Force, discussed key takeaways from the aftermath of Ukraine's operation."
"Drones and other "disruptive" technologies seen in Ukraine, he said, "will have big implications not just for our bomber force or our nuclear force but really any critical infrastructure." The Air Force is working to develop countermeasures for those threats, Gabara added. Hardened facilities hosting nuclear forces, like US intercontinental ballistic missiles and other strategic capabilities like B-2 Spirit bombers and cruise missiles for B-52 Stratofortress bombers, are "in a better position than some of our other mission spaces," Gabara said."
The Air Force is reassessing base defenses and counter-drone measures following Operation Spiderweb, in which Ukraine deployed more than 100 drones into Russian territory to strike airbases. Drones and other disruptive technologies pose risks to bomber and nuclear forces as well as to critical infrastructure. Hardened facilities hosting strategic capabilities such as ICBMs, B-2 bombers, and B-52 cruise missiles are better protected than some mission areas. Counter-drone capabilities exist at these bases, but the Air Force plans to modernize and accelerate those systems to address evolving unmanned aerial vehicle threats and improve protection of key military assets.
Read at Business Insider
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