On the 10th, as the war between the United States and Israel and Iran entered its 11th day, drones are drawing attention as a key weapon. The United States, Israel and Middle Eastern countries have taken heavier-than-expected damage from Iran's strategy of launching thousands of suicide drones to strike key facilities.
Drones are inexpensive and do not require high-end technology, yet can carry out effective offense and defense. The long-standing formula that the winner of a war must field large numbers of expensive precision weapons systems is showing cracks.
◇ Iran's "Shahed-136," cheaper than missiles
U.S. outlet CNBC said on the 5th local time, "Advanced drones such as the 'Shahed-136,' capable of long-range flight, have become the core of Iran's retaliation strategy against the United States and its allies, and thousands have been launched so far," adding, "While most drones have been intercepted with the help of U.S.-provided defense systems such as the 'Patriot,' many Shahed-136s are still hitting their targets." The UAE also said on the 8th local time that 117 Iranian drones flew in.
The Shahed-136, believed to have been developed in early 2020 in Iran, was first revealed to the public in 2021. It is a triangular airframe measuring 2.5 meters wide and 3.5 meters long and weighing 200 kilograms. It is said to have a maximum range of 2,500 kilometers.
The Shahed-136 loads a bomb of up to 50 kilograms in its nose, flies autonomously to the target and strikes it. Its top speed is 185 kilometers per hour, slower than missiles, and that very trait is deadly to adversaries. Most air defenses do not detect slow or low-flying objects in order to filter out birds and civilian aircraft.
It is also a headache for the United States, Israel and others that they must deploy costly interceptors to stop Shahed-136 attacks. Each Shahed-136 is said to cost between $20,000 and $50,000 (about 30 million to 70 million won). Considering that each interceptor missile used by the U.S. Patriot air defense system costs about $4 million (about 6 billion won), the price is very low.
In the United States, there is a view that Iran possesses enough drones to launch hundreds for at least several weeks. Citing sources, CNN said, "Within days of the war with Iran beginning, the Trump administration designated Iran's Shahed-136 arsenal as a serious military threat," adding, "In a recent closed-door congressional briefing, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Joint Chiefs Chair Dan Caine acknowledged that Iran's drones are a bigger problem than expected."
In response, the United States has deployed the drone "LUCAS" starting with this war. LUCAS was reportedly completed last year, modeled after the Shahed-136. As the U.S. military wrestled with defenses against the Shahed-136, it decided not to field a new product but to copy it outright.
Lauren Kahn, a senior fellow at Georgetown University's Center for Security and Emerging Technology, said, "It's the first time in a very long while, since the early Cold War, that the United States has assessed an adversary's capabilities, judged that they could fill gaps on our side, and moved to produce them domestically."
LUCAS is similar in size to the Shahed-136 but slightly smaller. Its materials are unknown, but it weighs 80 kilograms, much lighter than the Shahed-136. Its maximum range is a shorter 800 kilometers, and its warhead capacity is also smaller at 18 kilograms.
Each unit is reportedly priced at $35,000. The name LUCAS is an acronym for "Low-cost Uncrewed Combat Attack System," and the term itself conveys that it is "low-cost." The United States is also said to be using LUCAS to disable Iran's air defenses. The U.S. plans to secure a total of 340,000 such drones by early 2028.
In addition, the United States has developed drones that detect the Shahed-136—drones that stop drones. According to the Wall Street Journal (WSJ), this counter-drone system, called "Merops," is small enough to launch from a pickup truck and searches for incoming drones using radio waves, radar and the target's heat signature.
Merops can fly at speeds over 290 kilometers per hour and climb to a maximum altitude of about 4.8 kilometers. The WSJ reported, "When it reaches about 1.6 kilometers from the target, it uses artificial intelligence (AI) to acquire the target and detonates nearby." The current price is around $10,000, with expectations that it could fall to $7,000 depending on production volume.
◇ Korea develops drones that strike moving targets… "entering a new era of drone warfare"
Korea is also accelerating the acquisition of drone-related technology, led by the Agency for Defense Development (ADD). According to materials ADD submitted to lawmaker Yu Yong-weon of the People Power Party, the agency possesses technology for small unmanned aircraft like the Shahed-136 that can carry a warhead and strike designated coordinates.
On top of that, it is developing a medium-sized suicide drone that can strike fixed and moving targets without communication range limits by using satellite data, as well as technologies that allow multiple drones to form swarms and carry out strike missions.
However, compared with the United States and Iran, it is far behind in mass-producing drones. Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI), LIG Nex1 and Korean Air Lines are researching related technologies, but they have not reached mass production.
An official in the defense industry said, "Because the foundational technologies for guided weapons and fighter jets are strong, we can quickly secure the drone technology itself," but added, "However, the system to mass-produce cost-effective drones is not in place, and the Iran war has made it necessary to consider this deeply."
In the defense industry, there is a view that the more drone technology advances, the faster the nature of war will change. Steve Feldstein, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment, said, "Drones not only offer new offensive options, but they also give militarily weaker countries a means to inflict asymmetric damage on great powers," adding, "The world is entering a new era of drone warfare."