Drone invasions that cause disruption at European airports and attacks on oil fields in the Middle East have become recurrent in recent years.
This has driven a rapidly growing market for radars, signal jammers and defensive aircraft to protect airports and infrastructure against new aerial threats.
Drones have been causing disruption at airports for years. London’s Gatwick Airport is among those that had to suspend flights due to drone alerts before 2020.
However, a new wave of invasions linked to the wars in Ukraine and the Middle East has further intensified these concerns.
Technological advances recently introduced in response to this problem include a gun-shaped tool from US company Dedrone and an autonomous “flight companion” from Boeing that flies alongside fighter jets, carrying jammers and anti-drone weapons.
The sector is attracting billions of dollars in investment, going far beyond military use into sectors such as energy, maritime transport, data centers, hotels and airports.
Avinor, which owns and operates 43 airports across Norway, is one of the companies that has already installed a drone detection system in its operations to deal with the “disruptions and delays” that civilian drone incursions have caused to air traffic.
Reuters spoke to executives at companies specializing in combating drones, who cited a sharp increase in demand from governments, airports and .
“There is a direct effect of the large number of people reaching out to us,” said Siete Hamminga, chief executive of RobinRadar, a Netherlands-based counter-drone company whose technology grew out of research into bird strikes affecting aircraft.
Market against drones grows 20% per year
in Europe and the Middle East highlighted the need to protect economic and civil bases such as ports, oil fields and airports.
Drone attacks at Dubai airport, incursions in the Baltic countries, fires caused by debris resulting from intercepted drones in the Fujairah Oil Zone and suspected drone alerts at airports in Munich and Copenhagen have caused problems over the past year.
Some European airport authorities told Reuters they intend to step up their use of counter-drone technology.
Ash-Alexander Cooper, a Dedrone executive until June who spoke to the agency before leaving the company, said the requests began shortly after the war in Iran began in late February.
Many people asked for solutions that could be used “as quickly as possible”.
“I imagine we are one of many companies being sought out now that many more governments — not just in the Middle East — realize how vulnerable they are, with the extent and nature of the drone threat evolving in real time,” he commented.
Analysts estimate that the global market for anti-drone systems is worth between US$3 billion (equivalent to around R$15.4 billion) and US$7 billion (equivalent to around R$36.1 billion), growing at around 20% per year.
A report by MarketsandMarkets estimates that it will reach US$14.5 billion (equivalent to around R$74.8 billion) by 2030, compared to the current US$4.5 billion (equivalent to around R$23.2 billion).
Eben Frankenberg, chief executive of Echodyne, a maker of drone detection radars, said investment in a new factory that his company will open this year will multiply its annual capacity to more than 30,000 units.
“In terms of demand for our radars, we saw growth of well over 100% last year, and this is not decreasing”, he pointed out.
Strict rules on anti-drone technology
Despite strong interest, regulatory challenges and security concerns still limit deployment outside the military sphere.
Civilian airports have strict rules about what technologies can be used against drones and remain primarily focused on detection tools.
Issues such as signal jamming and GPS interference can disrupt communications and navigation, making these systems unsuitable for use near airports.
Additionally, it is typically not permitted to use weapons to shoot down drones in a civilian environment.
“It is simply not possible to use so-called effective kinetic means, such as machine guns or similar, near civilian infrastructure,” said a spokesperson for German radar manufacturer Hensoldt.
When it comes to deciding how systems that work in battlefield scenarios can be used legally and safely in civilian scenarios, much depends on national authorities.
“What is allowed is a regulatory question that needs to be answered by governments,” said Stephanie Lingemann, head of the aerial division at Helsing, a German company specializing in drones and AI.
“Cat and mouse game”
Meanwhile, drones are multiplying and becoming increasingly sophisticated.
“It’s always a cat and mouse game,” said Mike Schut, chief commercial officer at DroneShield, which uses radio frequency sensing in its counter-drone system.
“Someone creates a drone, and we need to make sure we stay ahead,” he said.
In the market in general, analysts have warned that increasingly sophisticated technologies are expensive, costing hundreds of thousands of dollars — and do not always work.
“Right now we are in panic mode, and everyone is acquiring absolutely every tool they can find in their arsenal to feel like they have a little more control,” explained Greg Falco, a professor at Cornell University.
“I’m seeing so many things that are nothing more than quackery,” he added.
