Within Swarms
Can One Microwave Burst Stop Several Drones?
Microwave weapons matter most when one burst can disrupt several drones before the defender runs out of engagement time.
On this page
- Why swarm attacks compress defensive timing
- How wide area pulses create batch effects
- What partial disruption can still accomplish
Page outline Jump by section
Introduction
A microwave counter-drone weapon does not need to destroy every drone individually to be valuable. Its main advantage is that a single pulse can affect multiple aircraft occupying the same volume of airspace, reducing swarm size in batches rather than forcing a defender into a sequence of one-on-one engagements. In swarm defence, this matters because the limiting factor is often time. When dozens of drones arrive together, a weapon that can simultaneously disrupt electronics across part of the formation can rapidly reduce the number of active threats and buy precious seconds for follow-on defences. High-power microwave (HPM) and radio-frequency directed energy systems are therefore designed around a one-to-many engagement model rather than the serial engagement model typical of most conventional interceptors and lasers. [Office of Naval Research]navy.milOffice of Naval Research Directed Energy Weapons: High Power Microwaves HPM weapons create beams of electromagnetic energy over a broad sOffice of Naval ResearchDirected Energy Weapons: High Power MicrowavesHPM weapons create beams of electromagnetic energy over a broad spe…
Why Swarm Attacks Compress Defensive Timing
Drone swarms create a throughput problem. Even if a defensive system can reliably defeat a single drone, success against a swarm depends on how many targets can be engaged before the formation reaches its objective.
This is where microwave effects become attractive. A microwave pulse propagates at the speed of light and can illuminate a broader region than a tightly focused laser beam. Instead of selecting one drone, dwelling on it, and then moving to the next, the weapon attempts to inject disruptive electromagnetic energy into multiple drones’ electronics at once. If several drones are exposed within the effective beam volume, several may be affected during the same engagement window. [Office of Naval Research+2RTX]navy.milOffice of Naval Research Directed Energy Weapons: High Power Microwaves HPM weapons create beams of electromagnetic energy over a broad sOffice of Naval ResearchDirected Energy Weapons: High Power MicrowavesHPM weapons create beams of electromagnetic energy over a broad spe…
The practical consequence is not merely faster destruction. It is a different engagement geometry. A defender may be able to reduce a 40-drone threat to a much smaller and less coordinated group after only a handful of pulses, avoiding the queue problem that swarms are designed to create.
How Wide-Area Pulses Create Batch Effects
The mechanism behind batch defeat is electronic coupling rather than physical impact.
High-power microwave systems generate intense electromagnetic energy intended to interact with electronic circuits. Depending on the design of both the weapon and the drone, the pulse may overload components, upset processors, corrupt signals, disrupt sensors, or damage electronics outright. The objective is to make the drone unable to complete its mission, whether through permanent failure or temporary disruption. [Office of Naval Research+2RTX]navy.milOffice of Naval Research Directed Energy Weapons: High Power Microwaves HPM weapons create beams of electromagnetic energy over a broad sOffice of Naval ResearchDirected Energy Weapons: High Power MicrowavesHPM weapons create beams of electromagnetic energy over a broad spe…
Batch effects emerge because the pulse is not restricted to a single point target. If multiple drones occupy the illuminated area:
- Several drones may suffer complete electronic failure.
- Others may lose navigation or flight-control functions.
- Some may experience communications interruptions.
- Others may enter failsafe modes or lose swarm coordination.
Not every aircraft must be destroyed for the pulse to be operationally useful. The important outcome is that a significant fraction of the swarm becomes ineffective simultaneously. [Office of Naval Research]navy.milOffice of Naval Research Directed Energy Weapons: High Power Microwaves HPM weapons create beams of electromagnetic energy over a broad sOffice of Naval ResearchDirected Energy Weapons: High Power MicrowavesHPM weapons create beams of electromagnetic energy over a broad spe…
The broad-beam nature of many HPM concepts explains why developers consistently market them as counter-swarm systems. Their value comes from affecting a volume of airspace rather than surgically attacking one airframe at a time. [Office of Naval Research+2Epirus]navy.milOffice of Naval Research Directed Energy Weapons: High Power Microwaves HPM weapons create beams of electromagnetic energy over a broad sOffice of Naval ResearchDirected Energy Weapons: High Power MicrowavesHPM weapons create beams of electromagnetic energy over a broad spe…
What Real Demonstrations Reveal About Batch Defeat
Recent demonstrations have increasingly focused on proving one-to-many engagement capability rather than merely showing that a microwave weapon can disable a drone.
In April 2025, the British Ministry of Defence announced successful trials of a radio-frequency directed energy weapon that defeated drone swarms. According to official reporting, soldiers brought down two separate swarms during a single engagement sequence, while more than 100 drones were immobilised across testing. The programme’s public emphasis was swarm defeat rather than individual target interception. [GOV.UK+2Defence Equipment & Support]GOV.UKBritish soldiers take down drone swarm in groundbreaking…17 Apr 2025 — British soldiers have successfully tracked, targeted and defeat…
Industry demonstrations have highlighted the same principle. Raytheon’s Phaser system is described as using a wide microwave beam that can disable drones simultaneously by attacking their electronics rather than striking each aircraft individually. [RTX]rtx.comPhaser High-Power Microwave System | RaytheonDefending at the speed of light. The Phaser high-power microwave system uses directed ene…
Similarly, Epirus has repeatedly showcased its Leonidas HPM system as a counter-swarm platform. In a 2025 live-fire demonstration, the company reported defeating a large drone swarm and demonstrated simultaneous engagement of multiple airborne targets. Subsequent reporting on the event highlighted claims that dozens of drones were disabled during a single activation, illustrating the batch-engagement concept that microwave advocates consider central to swarm defence. [Epirus+2Tom's Hardware]epirusinc.comEpirusEpirus' Leonidas High-Power Microwave Defeats 49-Drone…10 Sept 2025 — Leonidas engaged and defeated all three drones simultaneou…
These demonstrations do not imply that every drone in a swarm will always fail. They do show that designers are increasingly measuring success by the number of drones affected per engagement rather than by individual kill events.
What Partial Disruption Can Still Accomplish
A common misunderstanding is that microwave weapons are only useful if they permanently destroy electronics. In practice, partial disruption can produce significant operational effects.
Modern swarms often depend on coordination. Drones may share navigation information, exchange commands, maintain formation spacing, or synchronise attacks. If a microwave pulse simultaneously disrupts a portion of those systems, the swarm can lose coherence even when some aircraft remain airborne. [Office of Naval Research]navy.milOffice of Naval Research Directed Energy Weapons: High Power Microwaves HPM weapons create beams of electromagnetic energy over a broad sOffice of Naval ResearchDirected Energy Weapons: High Power MicrowavesHPM weapons create beams of electromagnetic energy over a broad spe…
Several outcomes can benefit the defender:
- The swarm may fragment into smaller groups.
- Individual drones may drift off course.
- Collision risk within the formation may increase.
- Some aircraft may revert to emergency behaviours.
- Surviving drones may become easier targets for other defences.
From a defensive perspective, reducing a coordinated swarm of forty drones to ten functioning aircraft can be almost as valuable as destroying all forty if it restores manageable engagement rates.
This is why official descriptions of HPM effects frequently refer to disruption as well as destruction. A drone that cannot complete its mission has effectively been removed from the attack even if its airframe remains intact. [Office of Naval Research]navy.milOffice of Naval Research Directed Energy Weapons: High Power Microwaves HPM weapons create beams of electromagnetic energy over a broad sOffice of Naval ResearchDirected Energy Weapons: High Power MicrowavesHPM weapons create beams of electromagnetic energy over a broad spe…
Why Batch Defeat Matters More Than Perfect Defeat
The key contribution of microwave weapons to swarm defence is not necessarily greater lethality. It is higher engagement throughput.
A laser may destroy one drone very effectively. A microwave pulse may affect many drones less predictably. Against isolated targets, the laser’s precision can be advantageous. Against dense swarms, however, the ability to thin the formation in batches can become more important than achieving a perfect kill on each aircraft. [The War Zone]twz.comThe War ZoneMarines Get Their First High Power Microwave Weapon…29 Apr 2025 — A wide beam means HPM weapons have greater potential to…
Viewed through the lens of swarm defence, the objective is often to reduce the number of incoming threats faster than the attacker can overwhelm the defender. Microwave systems pursue that goal by turning a single engagement into a multi-target event. The more drones occupying the affected area when a pulse arrives, the greater the potential batch effect—and the greater the chance of breaking the swarm’s numerical advantage before engagement time runs out. [RTX+2Defense News]rtx.comPhaser High-Power Microwave System | RaytheonDefending at the speed of light. The Phaser high-power microwave system uses directed ene…
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Further Reading
Books and field guides related to Can One Microwave Burst Stop Several Drones?. Use these as the next step if you want deeper reading beyond the article.
Army of None
Covers autonomous and massed unmanned systems that motivate one-to-many defensive weapons.
The Kill Chain
Explains why rapid reduction of incoming threats matters in compressed engagement timelines.
Drone Warfare
Explains the drone threat environment that makes batch effects valuable against multiple aircraft.
Kill Chain
Explains why rapid reduction of incoming threats matters in compressed engagement timelines.
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Endnotes
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Source: rtx.com
Link: https://www.rtx.com/raytheon/what-we-do/integrated-air-and-missile-defense/phaser-high-power-microwaveSource snippet
Phaser High-Power Microwave System | RaytheonDefending at the speed of light. The Phaser high-power microwave system uses directed ene...
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Source: GOV.UK
Link: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/british-soldiers-take-down-drone-swarm-in-groundbreaking-use-of-radio-wave-weaponSource snippet
British soldiers take down drone swarm in groundbreaking...17 Apr 2025 — British soldiers have successfully tracked, targeted and defeat...
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Source: onr.navy.mil
Link: https://www.onr.navy.mil/organization/departments/code-35/division-353/directed-energy-weapons-high-power-[microwavesSource snippet
Office of Naval ResearchDirected Energy Weapons: High Power MicrowavesHPM weapons create beams of electromagnetic energy over a broad spe...
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Source: twz.com
Link: https://www.twz.com/land/marines-get-their-first-high-power-microwave-weapon-for-taking-on-drone-swarmsSource snippet
The War ZoneMarines Get Their First High Power Microwave Weapon...29 Apr 2025 — A wide beam means HPM weapons have greater potential to...
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Source: epirusinc.com
Link: https://www.epirusinc.com/Source snippet
Epirus - Home of Leonidas, the Premier High-Power...Epirus combines the latest in directed energy, long-pulse high-power microwaves (HPM...
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Source: epirusinc.com
Link: https://www.epirusinc.com/electronic-warfareSource snippet
Epirus Leonidas High-Power Microwave: Directed Energy...Leonidas is a solid-state, high-power HPM system, utilizing Gallium Nitride (GaN...
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Source: des.mod.uk
Title: british army uses radio waves to down drone swarms
Link: https://des.mod.uk/british-army-uses-radio-waves-to-down-drone-swarms/Source snippet
Defence Equipment & SupportBritish Army uses radio waves to down drone swarms17 Apr 2025 — The British Army has tracked, targeted and def...
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Source: defensenews.com
Title: in first british army uses radio wave weapon to knock out drone swarm
Link: https://www.defensenews.com/global/europe/2025/04/17/in-first-british-army-uses-radio-wave-weapon-to-knock-out-drone-swarm/Source snippet
In first, British Army uses radio-wave weapon to knock out...17 Apr 2025 — The radio-frequency, directed-energy weapon was capable of ne...
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Source: epirusinc.com
Link: https://www.epirusinc.com/press-releases/epirus-leonidas-high-power-microwave-defeats-49-drone-swarm-100-of-drones-flown-at-live-fire-demonstrationSource snippet
EpirusEpirus' Leonidas High-Power Microwave Defeats 49-Drone...10 Sept 2025 — Leonidas engaged and defeated all three drones simultaneou...
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Source: tomshardware.com
Title: Tom’s Hardware High-power microwave system downs 49 drones in [one shot]({{ ‘one-shot/’ | relative_url }})
Link: https://www.tomshardware.com/tech-industry/high-power-microwave-system-downs-49-drones-in-one-shot-weaponized-electromagnetic-interference-erases-drone-swarms-en-masseSource snippet
electronics warfare company, successfully demonstrated a major advancement in counter-drone technology with its Leonidas high-power micro...
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Source: tomshardware.com
Link: https://www.tomshardware.com/tech-industry/autonomous-mobile-drone-swarm-killer-created-in-trilateral-us-defense-company-collab-the-new-leonidas-autonomous-ground-vehicle-agv-is-a-high-power-microwave-platformSource snippet
defense companies: Epirus, Kodiak AI, and General Dynamics Land Systems. Designed to counter the growing threat of aerial drone swarms, t...
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Source: Wikipedia
Title: Epirus Leonidas
Link: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Epirus_LeonidasSource snippet
Epirus LeonidasThe Leonidas is a high-power microwave (HPM) weapon developed to disable unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) swarms. in with...
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Source: droneintelligence.ai
Link: https://droneintelligence.ai/companies/epirusSource snippet
, Company Profile | Drone Intelligence2 May 2026 — High-power microwave (HPM) counter-drone systems. Leonidas platform is the leading non...
Published: May 2026
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Source: defensescoop.com
Title: epirus navy hpm microwave antx coastal trident
Link: https://defensescoop.com/2024/04/04/epirus-navy-hpm-microwave-antx-coastal-trident/Source snippet
Navy to test Epirus high-power microwave's ability to zap...4 Apr 2024 — The Navy is getting ready to test the ability of Epirus' high-e...
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Source: linkedin.com
Link: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/epirus_epirus-leonidas-high-power-microwave-defeats-activity-7371575751776608256-i0zZSource snippet
tic interference. “We believe showcasing our weaponized...
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Source: calibredefence.co.uk
Title: epirus zaps fibre optic fpv with leonidas microwave weapon
Link: https://www.calibredefence.co.uk/epirus-zaps-fibre-optic-fpv-with-leonidas-microwave-weapon/Source snippet
Epirus zaps fibre-optic FPV with Leonidas microwave...28 Jan 2026 — Epirus has developed a microwave weapon called Leonidas that has dem...
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Source: defence-blog.com
Title: epirus confirms leonidas microwave system integration with dft platform
Link: https://defence-blog.com/epirus-confirms-leonidas-microwave-system-integration-with-dft-platform/Source snippet
Epirus confirms Leonidas microwave system integration...25 Feb 2026 — The combined system links autonomous detection and tracking with n...
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Source: twz.com
Title: army puts 50m bet on next gen leonidas high power microwave counter drone tech
Link: https://www.twz.com/land/army-puts-50m-bet-on-next-gen-leonidas-high-power-microwave-counter-drone-techSource snippet
Army Puts $43M Bet On Next Gen Leonidas High Power...17 Jul 2025 — Epirus' CEO says successful tests of the company's Gen II system capa...
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Source: unmannedairspace.info
Title: epirus leonidas defeats 49 drone swarm with one electromagnetic burst
Link: https://www.unmannedairspace.info/counter-uas-systems-and-policies/epirus-leonidas-defeats-49-drone-swarm-with-one-electromagnetic-burst/Source snippet
Epirus' Leonidas defeats 49-drone swarm with one...2 Sept 2025 — Epirus' Leonidas defeats 49-drone swarm with one electromagnetic burst...
Additional References
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Source: facebook.com
Link: https://www.facebook.com/euronews/posts/a-new-weapon-successfully-took-down-over-a-hundred-drones-using-radio-frequency-/1048122227363107/Source snippet
A new weapon successfully took down over a hundrA new weapon successfully took down over a hundred drones using radio frequency in UK tes...
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Source: thedefensewatch.com
Link: https://thedefensewatch.com/cyber-space-defense/uk-thales-rapiddestroyer-radio-frequency-weapon-counter-uas-trials-2026/Source snippet
UK Tests Thales RapidDestroyer Radio Frequency...6 days ago — The UK has tested Thales' RapidDestroyer radio frequency weapon, neutraliz...
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Source: dsm.forecastinternational.com
Link: https://dsm.forecastinternational.com/2025/04/22/thales-rapiddestroyer-demonstrator-neutralizes-drone-swarms-in-british-army-trials/Source snippet
RapidDestroyer Demonstrator Neutralizes Drone...22 Apr 2025 — Thales UK has completed a series of trials of the RapidDestroyer system ai...
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Source: youtube.com
Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F1vY5efYXMQSource snippet
The radio wave weapon that takes down drones: Meet the RF...The weapon creates an intense beam of radio frequency energy which directly...
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Source: army-technology.com
Title: uk develop rf directed energy weapon as part of its new c uas range
Link: https://www.army-technology.com/news/uk-develop-rf-directed-energy-weapon-as-part-of-its-new-c-uas-range/Source snippet
UK develop RF directed energy weapon as part of its new...17 Apr 2025 — British troops downed a drone swarm of up to 100 systems using a...
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Source: researchgate.net
Title: 374165879 Military Applications of High Power Microwaves
Link: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/374165879_Military_Applications_of_High-Power_MicrowavesSource snippet
(PDF) Military Applications of High-Power Microwaves25 Sept 2023 — The report contains a survey of High Power Microwave devices including...
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Source: jedonline.com
Link: https://www.jedonline.com/2023/01/24/high-power-microwave-systems-getting-much-much-closer-to-operational-status/Source snippet
High-Power Microwave Systems – Getting (Much...24 Jan 2023 — In this article, we're going to look at HPM technology, it's history and cu...
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Source: independent.co.uk
Title: drones ministry of defence weapons video b2734898
Link: https://www.independent.co.uk/tv/news/drones-ministry-of-defence-weapons-video-b2734898.htmlSource snippet
Watch how UK's game-changing weapon takes down...17 Apr 2025 — A UK-developed invisible radio wave weapon has taken down “drone swarms”...
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Source: newsflare.com
Link: https://www.newsflare.com/video/792400/jaw-dropping-new-weapon-knocks-dozens-of-attacking-drones-out-of-skySource snippet
le drone swarms by emitting targeted electromagnetic pulses to overload and...
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Source: newatlas.com
Title: british army energy weapon blasts drones swarm
Link: https://newatlas.com/military/british-army-energy-weapon-blasts-drones-swarm/Source snippet
British Army energy weapon blasts drones by the swarm16 Apr 2025 — The British Army tests a Radiofrequency Directed Energy Weapon (RF DEW...
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