The new Chinese weapon that was revealed almost by accident

The Russia-Ukraine war continues to accelerate the trend of implementing new systems, with Kiev alone testing more than a thousand of them last year. At the same time, Russia is drawing lessons and making adjustments to its systems, with the aim of providing it with unmanned capabilities. And if we’re talking about unmanned systems, China uses civilian research means to gather naval intelligence. About all this and more in the weekly defense industries corner.

Ukraine tested about 1,300 new systems in 2024

Wars are a means of accelerating security processes. In Israel they learned this as a result of the “Iron Swords” war, but even before that they internalized it in the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine, which in 2024 alone received more than 1,300 samples of military systems for exams. In Kyiv, they note that nearly 75% of the approved samples are of Ukrainian production, a move that encourages the local defense industry.

The Army Reconnaissance website reports that the prominent categories were unmanned aerial vehicles, electronic warfare, means of collection, communication and unmanned terrestrial systems. In the shadow of the number of companies interested in joining the war in Ukraine, the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense decided about six months ago to reduce the registration procedures to only five documents, with the aim of making the application procedures shorter.

At the same time, in order to maintain the land front, the Ukrainians are using everything at hand. This is reflected, for example, in the taking of T-90 tanks that are used by both armies, and in Kyiv they use the Russian ones that come to them for spare parts. This method of operation has already earned Ukrainian tanks the nickname “Farkenstein”, due to the fact that they are a solution that is not identical one to one to the original from the factory.

Russia presents: an unmanned anti-tank missile launcher

Russian arms giant Kalashnikov is in the advanced stages of developing the Konkors M, a remote-launched anti-tank missile system. Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, but it was Kiev that was far more prepared in the unmanned area. Now the new system reflects the lessons learned In Moscow, which needs to expand its basket of capabilities in the unmanned field, especially in anti-tank capabilities.

Concourse M is capable of hitting tanks, logistics convoys and even helicopters. The Concourse M is indeed operated from a distance, but a significant challenge lies in the short distance required from the operator, who himself may be in danger. The duration of its operation is 8 hours, as reflected in experiments carried out in order to simulate the battlefield in Ukraine.

Elbit sells a UAV defense system to a European country

Elbit was awarded a contract in the amount of approximately 60 million dollars for the supply of multilayer systems against unmanned aerial vehicles (C-UAS) to a European NATO country, which will be carried out over three years. As part of the contract, Elbit will supply its modular system against UAVs ReDrone.

The system includes an advanced DAiR radar, Signet sensors, electronic warfare capabilities, and day and night electro-optical radars, which provide an integrated and improved aerial image alongside advanced electronic attack capabilities.

The modular, multi-sensor and multi-task ReDrone system is part of Elbit’s product portfolio in the field of electronic warfare. It provides functions that are not limited to the active and passive sensors, but also enables the detection and location of several unmanned aerial systems at the same time and through different communication channels, in the area defined as protected.

The system can detect, identify, classify, track and neutralize hostile UAVs, day and night, in both urban and other environments, and in changing weather conditions. The solution can be stationary or mobile, with the option of being installed on a vehicle in order to increase operational flexibility.

The Chinese are using unmanned means of maritime intelligence in the Philippines

China uses a variety of collection methods throughout the Far East, one of the newest of which was recently discovered at all thanks to routine fishing activity in the Philippines. These caught a Chinese-made glider in their net.

It is an unmanned underwater vehicle (UUV) whose civilian uses are designed to drift while ascending and descending, to take measurements – and when it is up, transmit information to the shore. It has no engine, but is driven by gravity and buoyancy forces that make it rise and fall and by wings that turn part of the vertical movement into horizontal. Due to the lack of an engine, it is energy efficient and can go on missions that last for months.

This is the first time a Chinese glider has been captured in the economic waters of the Philippines, after two similar incidents in Indonesia in 2019 and 2020. The Chinese glider was captured by the Filipino fishermen at a distance of only about 9 km from the island of Masabata, which is located in the heart of the Philippine archipelago. The glider, which is about 2 meters long, was handed over by the fishermen to the Philippine police and the local navy to investigate the vessel.

Serbia uses Chinese military in the heart of Europe

Serbia recently deployed its most advanced defense system, the Chinese-made FK-3. This system includes command and control vehicles, missile launchers and radars that connect into a system designed to provide protection against a series of threats. Before the deployment, the Serbian Air Force underwent training in China, after which various launch exercises were carried out in the FK-3.

This is one system among many as part of the arms race run by Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic, also with the help of strategic deals in the Israeli market. In November, Belgrade closed a deal with Elbit to purchase PULS cannons from Elbit for $335 million.

The PULS system provides a comprehensive solution, which is capable of launching unguided rockets, precision munitions and missiles at different ranges. The launcher is fully adapted to existing platforms, whether wheeled or tracked, thus allowing a significant reduction in maintenance and training costs, while it is possible to hit targets with a maximum range of 300 km.