By Li Chun
ORENBURG, Russia, Sep.24 -- The main stage drill of the SCO Peace Mission-2021 joint anti-terrorism military exercise was at the Donguz training range in Orenburg Oblast, Russia on September 23 local time. During the drill, resisting drone-based attacks has become a highlight, and the practical significance behind which is more worthy of attention.
In resisting drone-based attacks, the primary point is to detect the drones in time, and then, the electro-magnetic interference and concentrated fire strikes should be adopted to destroy the drones, according to Gu Zhiheng, a reconnaissance commander assigned to a combined-arms brigade under the PLA Northern Theater Command.
Gu added that in this joint exercise, tough destruction with concentrated fire strikes has been applied in countering the drones’ attacks, which imposed higher requirements on operation accuracy and became a test of the participating troops’ capabilities.
The drones have been more and more widely used on the battlefield due to the small appearance, difficulty in detection, low cost, easy availability, agile maneuverability, and flexible application. Nevertheless, they were also utilized by terrorist organizations worldwide, frequently seen in terrorist attacks in recent years.
Senior Colonel Li Shuyin, a researcher with the Academy of Military Sciences of the Chinese PLA, pointed out that being dedicated to “countering large-scale terrorist attacks against the SCO member states launched by terrorist organizations worldwide” within the framework of the SCO, the series of Peace Mission joint exercises have to keep pace with the times and pay special attention to the new changes of war forms and operational patterns.
In recent regional conflicts such as the Syrian civil war and the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, drone and anti-drone operations have been a game-changer to a certain extent. There has been a view that drone groups and even drone swarms can be a special mode of future air combat, which is linked to the development of futuristic military operations, and might profoundly change the operational mode and even some rules of modern warfare.
As an important member state of the SCO and also the host country of the exercise, Russia is quite experienced in fighting against drone-based attacks, said Li Shuyin. Many elements and tactics of the exercise were derived from the actual combat experience of the Russian military in recent years. It is hoped that through the training on fighting against the drones’ attacks by terrorists, the SCO member states could learn from each other and continuously improve their anti-terrorism capabilities.
