Fiber-optic drones are breaking into the world of warfare. First seen in 2023 from the Russians, these specialized drones are impervious to EW(electronic warfare). Thanks to the the fiber-optic spool that unwinds from the drone as it flies towards its designated target, they are able to evade detection from the typically used radio-based “RF sniffers” and cannot be jammed by typical radio-jamming technology.
Every advancement in drone technology creates a new advantage in modern warfare. And fiber-optic drones are no exception.
Russia has led the world in the use of fiber-optic drones in warfare, and using them throughout the year of 2024 has given them an the upper hand. And they are now mass producing fiber-optic drones, each one utiliIzing a spool of fiber optic cable for enhanced performance. Meanwhile, Ukraine is making big strides in developing their own fiber-optic drone technology to combat Russia's growing advantage in drone warfare.
What We Know So Far in the Development of Fiber-Optic Drones
Fiber-optic cables are not new, having been invented in the 1970s by Narinder Singh Kapany. However, using fiber optics to empower drones is a new stealth opportunity and has triggered a boom in new application for fiber optics.
Fiber-optic drones are constantly in a state of advancement as they are becoming more and more important in studying combatants and deploying explosives. Indeed, the ongoing competition between Russia and Ukraine over drone capabilities can be said to be fueling worldwide interest in drone development and drone tactical warfare.
The latest fiber-optic drones can reaching distances up to 20 kilometers, which is twice as far as they were able to go even a year ago. Differences in drone designs, spool lengths, and battery sizes limit traveling distances to 2–20 kilometers. While the fiber optic cable grants stealth and jamming-resilience advantages, the wire coils add additional weight to the drones, impacting their distance.
Due to these drones holding more weight than the average FPV (first-person view) drone, the carrying capacity of fiber-optic drones is also limited. The possibility of explosives and other weapons onboard is small to non-existent. That's not to say they are completely harmless. Even small weaponry can cause destruction and successful stealth reconnaissance missions can lead to devastating effects.
The Consequences of Fiber-Optic Drone Operations
Every precaution is to be taken into account. Mistake-of-fact vehicle drone bombings have become common enough that Ukrainian civilians have taken to tying white ribbons to their cars to indicate they are not military and are not to be targeted.
Fiber-optic drones are actively disrupting military defenses in Ukraine. As of this post Ukraine has established “no go” zones for armored vehicles covering 20 kilometers. These “no go” zones won’t allow armored vehicles to pass as the danger from drone warfare is heightened in particular areas. This is a direct result of the Russian fiber-optic drone missions and the destruction they lead to, particularly in the ongoing Ukraine and Russia conflict.
Detecting Fiber-Optic Drones With Man-Portable Radars
Despite their resilience to radio detection and jamming, it is possible to detect and track fiber-optic drones. Spotter manpackable radars can track dark drones, incluidng fiber-optic drones, as far as 250m to 1,050m away in real time, indicating where, how fast, and in what direction these drones are going, making response times quicker and more efficient.
Spotter Radars detect the mass of an object rather than collecting the radio signals that would usually broadcast from a drone. The radar sends out pulses of radio waves that bounce off objects in the surrounding area and return to the radar with information on those objects. The continual bouncing of several radio waves per second on targets, allows the radar to track the target’s size, position, velocity, and trajectory.
How China is Involved in the Fiber-Optic Drone Race
China has a unique stance in this conflict. Manufacturing fiber-optic wire spools has been China’s key role during this phase in the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war. Both sides have benefited from Chinese products.
China is selling its wares at a rapid rate. After receiving many orders from Russia, prices for fiber-optic cable have dropped from 2500 USD to 500 USD as demand for fiber-optic FPV drones has increased since 2023.
There has even been some speculation on whose drones Russia is using in the conflict.There is a widespread perception that China is leaning more towards allying with Russia and their regime. Ukrainians have found “Vandal”, a downed fiber-optics drone from the Russian side. This "Vandal” drone was found to have Chinese writing on the exterior, indicating Russia is associated with China on a deeper level than publicly claimed. Russia claims to be creating their own drones but according to this evidence they might be having some of their drones imported from China.
The Future of Fiber-Optic Stealth Drones In Ukraine
As of January 2nd of 2025, Ukraine has announced 10 fiber-optic drones they are testing and are in the final stages of codification. Codification is the arrangement of certain laws, rules or regulations for the use and operation of certain products. This arrangement is there to help the drones laws and regulations be clearly drawn and easily accessible to private and public entities.
Although there are no current contracts with manufacturers, there are final-stage discussions on mass producing fiber-optic drones. These drones should be out to contracting and production as early as February.
Fiber-optic drones have made a big splash in the world of stealth and security. However, they are still thought of as a niche and specialized product, particularly in the realm of fiber optic cable technology. As there are several disadvantages to them, there is still only a narrow and particularized time and place for their use.
With the drawbacks taken into account, radio-controlled drones will still be the primary drones used by the Ukrainian armed forces in the immediate future. Ranging from 5 to 200 kilometers and able to carry a larger payload, radio-controlled drones are the mainstay of the Ukraine-Russia conflict.
Not only is Ukraine planning on the expansion and development of radio-controlled drones, there is also constant discussion on drone tactics and strategy. A potential transition from singular drone activity to swarm technologies is being studied and hoped to be implemented in 2025.
Fiber-Optic Drone Limitations
A lot of work has gone into creating fiber-optic drones. But even with all the work there are still many things to take into consideration. As already mentioned, carrying capacity and range are large factors that influence the effectiveness of drones in the Ukraine and Russia conflict. Agility is another feature that has to be considered.
The thin fiber-optic wires that enable fiber-optic drones are strong yet very fragile, with limits on their bendability. Drone pilots during testing have been known to make too-sharp turns of more than 45 degrees that accidentally cut the fiber optic wire by the drone's own propellers. There are also tangling and other movability issues to contend with.
Fiber-optic wire is a strength, but also a weakness to drone operations. As these drone fly over large and varied landscapes, cluttered areas are sure to cause snagging problems that non-tethered drones wouldn't have an issue with.
However, many of these issues may be resolved as they are studied and technology improves. Flight strategies and user capabilities are also likely to improve as fiber-optic drones become more popular and widespread.
Defence Against Fiber-Optic Drones
With many engineers on both sides of the war working on advancing fiber-optic technology, there is still a struggle to take down enemy drones. At this point there is still no 100% guaranteed ways of disabling fiber-optic drones in flight
With little to no success in disabling fiber-optic drones, all creative options are being considered. Ideas such as using turrets, net launchers, and shotguns have been considered. There have also been some studies on the possibility of using lasers to disable fiber-optic drones.
Detecting “Dark” Drones in Jammed Radiospace
Fiber-optic drones are dark in radio space, but radar detects the movement and speed of any moving object of sufficient mass within its targeted monitoring area. Compact surveillance radars (CRS) send out radio waves, not to detect radio signatures, but to bounce off moving objects in their detection range. These bounced radio waves return to the radar with information about the location, size, speed, and trajectory of detected objects. When paired with Spotter Global’s NIO software, Spotter radar systems are able to instantly differentiate between flocks of birds, incoming drones, and other aircraft types.
Because Spotter radars can detect and track distant targets across several hundred meters (depending on the radar), they will often spot a drone before human eyes can. Wind, snow and other weather conditions, including low-light conditions, are no match for Spotter radars as they track the mass of any drone through any environmental obscurant.
Knowing where as well as what dangers are approaching and how far away they are is crucial in protecting yourself and those around you. To this end, radar has a history of being pivotal in wartime scenarios. Starting in the 1940s radar has played an important role in detecting danger. And the modern era is no exception.
Mobile surveillance radars can be used by mobile military teams, assisting them in evasive, defensive or offensive maneuvers. When warfighters can detect distant targets approaching them early on they retain more tactical options and have more time to choose their next course of action.
Spotter Global has partnered with military units across the world, stationing radar units across bases, critical infrastructure sites, and temporary locaitons, protecting buildings and personnel in a wide variety of environments. For example, Spotter Global radar drone detection systems, including the AX250 have been deployed to protect electrical substations, military fortifications, dams, data centers and other vital locations from unwanted drone activity.
Every minute is important when life and death are on the line. And thanks to the mobile-focused design of Spotter Global's Tactical Radar Kits™ (TRKs)™ , setting up the equipment to achieve reliable, all-weather “dark drone” detection in any location takes moments instead of hours or longer. With a lightweight (TRK)™, setting up radar perimeter security is straightforward and can be completed in any environment by a single-man team.
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Spotter Global is and will continue to help mitigate the risk presented by “dark drones” of all varieties. We are dedicated to developing and providing the tools needed to detect threats and protect our mobile warfighters in the field. Our priority, first and foremost, has always been Preventing Harm.