Israel's Rafael Advanced Defense Systems this week unveiled its newest development, the Drone Dome defense system, design to intercept enemy unmanned aerial vehicles. Rafael is also the developer of the Israeli military's highly successful Iron Dome missile defense system.
The Drone Dome was unveiled during the 2016 LAAD Public and Corporate Security International Exhibition in Brazil. According to Rafael, Drone Dome is an innovative end-to-end defense system designed to provide effective airspace defense against hostile drones, including micro and nano drones used by terrorist groups to gather intelligence and carry out aerial attacks.
Drone Dome is designed to detect, track, and neutralize drones classified as threats. According to Rafael, the system is equipped with a state of the art RPS-42 radar, MEOS electro-optical observation mechanism, and advanced C-Guard RD wide spectrum signal jammer.
The interceptor offers its handlers 360-degree coverage of an area under all weather conditions, 24 hours a day. Rafael said Drone Dome has a very fast response time, and causes minimal environmental interruptions—a priority for urban areas—with "maximum safety to friendly aircraft."
Drone Dome detects a potential threat using its radar, electro-optical, and infrared components. The data is then processed, and should a threat be identified, the system alerts operators of the hostile drone in the monitored airspace. The system's signal jammer is then put into action, either automatically or manually, and finally, the hostile drone is neutralized either by the interceptor's satellite navigation or radio frequency jamming system.