Drone Technology
AEROSPACETESTINGINTERNATIONAL.COM // SEPTEMBER 71
which has developed a range of systems that allows
security and defence organizations to physically capture
small drones. A key feature of the systems – known as
SkyWall – is their ability to capture a drone with
minimal damage to both the unmanned aerial vehicle
(UAV) and the surrounding area by using a net.
According to Andrew Charlton, business
development and technical sales manager at OpenWorks
Engineering the use of a net reduces operational risk and
facilitates verification, forensic investigation and
intelligence gathering – while giving the operator a
“clear and known outcome when deploying the counter
measure against a target”.
“SkyWall is designed to cause low
collateral damage, be cost effective and to
provide a rapidly scalable means of
mitigating the UAS threat. The
systems have several built-in safety
features that allow them to be deployed
in complex and urban areas,” he says.
The SkyWall systems are commonly deployed with
electronic counter-measures to provide a layered defence
that is effective against drones that cannot be jammed.
They can also be deployed independently in
environments where electronic attacks cannot be
deployed because of interference, such as airports and
critical national infrastructure sites.
SkyWall100, which fires a net using
compressed air from a shoulder-mounted
launcher has been operational for several
years and is used at airports, power
stations and other critical infrastructure
sites across Europe, Asia and North
America, including at the Pentagon.
SkyWall300 is a remotely operated
version of the drone capture device.
“SkyWall300 can be used standalone
or integrated with a drone detection and
command-and-control system to offer a
highly capable and easy to operate
counter-drone solution. We have already
completed integration projects with some
of the world’s leading full system and
detection providers,” says Charlton.
The latest development is an auto
reloader for the SkyWall300, which when
integrated with a drone detection and
security system provides a fully
autonomous anti-drone solution able to
target multiple threats. The use of
multiple SkyWall300s offers the capability
1
“Automated alert
systems minimize
potential disruption
and, importantly,
maintain the safety
of inbound and
outbound aircraft”
2
3
1 // Systems that integrate
with ATC operations to
protect flight paths at low
altitudes have to be tested
before integration into
current systems
2 // The SkyWall 100 is
fired from the shoulder
and launches a net to
capture a rogue drone
3 // An autonomous
version of SkyWall that
can be mounted on a
vehicle is under
development
/AEROSPACETESTINGINTERNATIONAL.COM