Power to the People by Audrey Kurth Cronin

Author:Audrey Kurth Cronin
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Published: 2019-10-15T00:00:00+00:00

Drones as Missiles

Not only are drones growing more advanced in terms of surveillance and targeting, they’re also increasingly affordable. With UAVs becoming so economical, the distinction between reusable craft and one-time-use cruise missiles is fast disappearing, because cheap platforms are expendable.124 As missiles, UAVs may be loaded with explosives and driven kamikaze-style into buildings—as has been attempted on numerous occasions.125 For example, in 2011, Rezwan Ferdaus, an al-Qaeda enthusiast, plotted to load F-86 Sabre and F-15 Phantom drone aircraft with C-4 plastic explosives and fly them into the US Capitol building and the Pentagon.126

UAVs are certainly not invulnerable: radio-controlled UAVs can be jammed (interfering with their GPS receiver’s ability to pick up signals) or spoofed (replacing their GPS signal with a spoofer’s signal), and military forces can shoot them down or grab them with nets.127 Drone manufacturers are also installing self-regulating features: the DJI Phantom 2 drone has firmware installed that employs geofencing around key spots such as airports or Tiananmen Square, for example. Some drones have “sense and avoid” technology, software that monitors the airspace for obstacles.128 But of course those inclined to perpetrate violence with the devices aren’t likely to purchase UAVs with those features, and they can also be hacked or disabled.

When it comes to defending against attacks, individuals, terrorist groups, or insurgents have the advantage of surprise, especially if aerial IEDs are directed against vulnerable civilian targets. Plus, when law enforcement agencies and military forces shoot explosive-laden flying drones out of the sky, they might still be dangerous to people on the ground. The psychological effects could be disproportionate to the potential lethality of the drone—harassing and distracting military members from above, or intimidating civilian populations and undermining governments whose top priority is to protect their citizens.

Responding to the drone could also kill civilians on the ground. If radar systems were set to the sensitivity and altitude required to detect a drone, they could react to every bird, kite, or swaying tree in the area, evacuating or locking down sensitive buildings, scrambling F-16s to respond to false alarms, or simply shooting at them from the ground.129 All of this could spread public fear and lead to pressure for ill-considered and poorly targeted retaliatory responses. In terrorism, the important thing is usually the political effect on a population and how governments react to the attacks, not necessarily the level of destruction.

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