Armies race to deploy drones, robotic vehicles on battlefield

Defence forces are rapidly adopting and testing technology that facilitates unmanned border patrol and convoys.

A weaponised multi-utility tactical transport vehicle on display at Camp Pendleton, California.

Robotic vehicles are taking aim at the modern battlefield.

In Israel, semi-automated vehicles patrol some of the country’s borders. The US Army is working on trucks that can drive themselves in a convoy. Russia, at a military exhibition in August, showed off the Nerekhta, a machinegun firing — and self-driving — mini-tank.

Foot soldiers for years have watched as wars in the air have been transformed by the introduction of drones. Systems such as the Reaper drone, made by San Diego-based General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, have become a staple of warfare in Iraq and Afghanistan. They have helped air forces conduct missions over longer periods, unencumbered by issues such as fatigue, and kept pilots out of harm’s way.

Now ground troops are starting to enjoy some of the same benefits.

“The robotics field, at least for the military, is going through a very extreme uptick of interest in the Pentagon. A lot of things that were distant future are rapidly accelerating,” said Kevin Mills, associate director for ground vehicle robotics at the US Army Tank Automotive Research Development and Engineering Centre.

As with drones in the air, Israel has been an early adopter of land-based systems. The Israel Defence Forces deployed an unmanned ground vehicle along some of its borders to look for signs of possible incursions and keep troops away from cross-border sniper fire.

The initial design was based on the Australian Tomcar off-road, four-wheeler, equipped with a number of cameras and other sensors. It sported cameras providing remotely located operators a 360-degree view.

Israeli defence has now upgraded the system, replacing it with one built on a Ford’s F-350 utility truck. It carries better sensors and improved controls, according to the IDF. Israel wouldn’t disclose how many vehicles it has or where they operate.

The US Army this year published an autonomous-systems strategy calling for accelerated introduction of such vehicles. The service has started testing some in northern Michigan. The first trucks are being modified to operate in eight-vehicle convoys in which only the lead vehicle is driven.

It is a concept that has appeal beyond the US military.

“I would be very happy if my soldiers could rest while driving,” said Swedish Army Chief of Staff Major General Karl Engelbrektson earlier this year, adding that would keep them fresh to fight when they reach a target.

Technological advances being driven by commercial self-driving car programs such as those pursued by Google parent Alphabet and Elon Musk’s Tesla are aiding the military, too.

Although the Army couldn’t directly tap the closely guarded intellectual property the commercial companies are using, Mr Mills said the self-driving car initiatives were driving down the price of critical sensor technologies needed to manoeuvre vehicles across the battlefield.

Up next for the US Army is a system it calls “Wingman”. The service plans to demonstrate within three years an unmanned version of its ubiquitous Humvee, the commonly used four-wheel drive vehicle, armed with a weapon that could be fired remotely.

The customer clamour from the world’s armed forces has prompted European arms maker BAE Systems to dust off its unmanned Black Knight tank demonstrator, which it first rolled in 2006. The 10-tonne tracked tank was remotely operated from another armoured vehicle.

Next year, BAE wants to showcase the autonomous operations of the tank, which is equipped with a 30mm cannon, can reach speeds of 75km an hour, said Mark Signorelli, head of strategic planning at BAE’s US Platforms and Services business.

Major General Kathryn Toohey, head of land capabilities for the Australian Army, says the service believes autonomous systems will be teamed with soldiers. For a country like Australia with a relatively small army of around 30,000 troops compared with its vast territory, unmanned systems would help add mass, she said.

The bulk of Australia’s planned $US20 billion ($26bn) in spending during the next decade to modernisation of its army will be focused on replacing tanks and troops carriers with newer models.

The British Army next year plans a major exercise to test unmanned systems. “We are absolutely wedded to robotics and autonomous systems,” said Major General Chris Tickell, the British Army’s head of capabilities. Reconnaissance missions and breaching systems to clear minefields may be early applications, he said.