Tag Archive for: Drone

Kratos, Oklahoma Elected Officials Celebrate Completion of 100th MQM-178 Firejet High-Performance Jet Drone System at Oklahoma City Aircraft Manufacturing Facility

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SAN DIEGO, April 12, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. (NASDAQ: KTOS), a Technology Company in the Defense, National Security and Global Markets and an industry-leading provider of high-performance, jet-powered unmanned aerial systems, joined by Oklahoma Secretary of Military and Veterans Affairs John Nash, Senator Markwayne Mullin (R-OK), Representative Tom Cole (R-OK-4), and Representative Stephanie Bice (R-OK-5), today celebrated the 100th MQM-178 Firejet high-performance jet powered target drone aircraft produced at the Kratos Unmanned aircraft manufacturing facility in Oklahoma City.

Kratos MQM-178 Firejet on Launcher is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/2e145536-3598-438a-95f7-ce0daec7d453

With primary customers including the United States Air Force, Navy, and Army, as well as foreign ally militaries, the Kratos Unmanned Systems Division opened this manufacturing facility in November 2018 to accommodate the existing and increasing demand for its newest line of high performance, jet-powered unmanned aerial tactical drone and target drone systems.

Today, the Kratos Unmanned Oklahoma City aircraft manufacturing facility is fully operational with two major drone aircraft systems in rate production, plus prototype production of a third system. The Kratos Unmanned Oklahoma City aircraft manufacturing facility is home to the MQM-178 Firejet, which first rolled off the production line in Oklahoma in April 2019 and is produced in high quantities monthly/annually today, in both a target and tactical system configuration. The XQ-58A Valkyrie, a high-performance tactical UAV capable of long-range flights at high-subsonic speeds, currently under contract with multiple Department of Defense customers, is also produced at the Kratos Oklahoma manufacturing facility. Kratos is also in prototype production of an additional, high performance tactical drone system at the Oklahoma facility.

Kratos XQ-58A Valkyrie Ready for Flight is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/86419ba2-a560-4328-8b8b-b2087abe3c18

Including production at the Oklahoma City facility, Kratos today manufactures approximately 150…

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Five vengeful ways US could hit back after Russia fighter jet downs Reaper drone

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RUSSIA and the US are facing a crisis after a Russian fighter jet brought down a US reaper drone.

The incident over the Black Sea marks the first time since the height of the Cold War that an American aircraft has been brought down by the Russians.

And the US has warned it could escalate into war as fears of miscalculation are now looming over Putin’s bloody war in Ukraine.

The drone was taken down while flying over the Black Sea near Russian occupied Crimea – close to the current frontline.

US officials said the Russian Su-27 jet struck the propeller of the MQ-9 Reaper drone resulting in it crash landing in the sea and its loss.

Prior to the collision, which happened at 7am local time, two Su-27s had “dumped fuel on and flew in front of the MQ-9” in a “reckless” and “unprofessional” manner.

Horrified US military personnel in Germany watched a live feed from the drone as the Russian jets repeatedly flew around it, dumping fuel to damage cameras and sensors, reported New York Times.

Senior US officials have been worried for months that some sort of incident over the Black Sea could lead to a miscommunication and confrontation.

And predictably, the Russians denied everything – instead claiming the Reaper crashed due to a mistake by the pilot.

But what are the options for the US should they wish to respond to the Russians?

MISSILE STRIKES

The most direct form of retaliation – and of course the most dangerous – would be a direct attack on Russian targets.

It was a course of action contemplated by Donald Trump back in 2019 when the Iranians shot down a US surveillance drone with a missile.

The president had reportedly initially approved attacks on a handful of Iranian targets, like radar and missile batteries.

But despite saying the US has been “cocked and loaded” to attack he called off the strike with 10 minutes to spare after being told that the airstrike might kill as many as 150 people.

But unlike the Iranian incident, the US appear to be chalking up this drone drama to reckless accident rather than a deliberate aggressive action.

So this lowers the chances of Washington taking military action in response.

Also – any attack on the Russian military risks the…

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World’s largest drone maker DJI is unfazed by challenges like US blacklist

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  • DJI was formed in 2006 out of a college dorm room by its founder Frank Wang. The company currently has over 14,000 employees, 25% of which are research and development-based.
  • DJI is just one of many tech companies that has found its products used on the battlefield.
  • In December 2021, the Shenzhen-based company was placed on an investment blacklist by the U.S. government over its alleged ties to the surveillance of Uighur Muslims in China’s Xinjiang region.

The world’s biggest drone maker DJI found itself embroiled in the Russia-Ukraine conflict last year.

In March, three weeks after Russia’s invasion began, a Ukrainian minister called out DJI on Twitter for being complicit in the war.

DJI is just one of many tech companies that has found its products used on the battlefield.

The Russian military allegedly used its drones on the battlefield. It includes the Mavic 3 drone, and Aeroscope, a drone-detection platform that enables users to identify the location of a drone operator. 

DJI — also known as Da Jiang Innovations — denied the allegations and insisted its products are designed for civilian use, and “do not meet military specifications.”

“We certainly don’t support their use for combat,” Adam Welsh, DJI’s Head of Global Policy, told CNBC.

“The unfortunate thing is that it’s a very reliable product. So, it’s become a product of choice, even for those who want to use a drone inappropriately.” 

DJI suspended its product sales to Russia and Ukraine in April. That suspension continues to be in place.

The company is not backing down despite challenges, and continues to aim for the skies.

DJI currently dominates more than 70% of the global drone market. According to a report by Drone Industry Insights, the market is expected to grow from $30.6 billion in 2022 to $55.8 billion by 2030.

The Shenzhen-based company was formed in 2006 out of a college dorm room by its founder Frank Wang. It started out by building drone control systems, which were sold to hobbyists building their own drones. By 2013, the company released its first ready-to-fly drone, the Phantom 1.

he DJI Mavic 3 Cine Drone in action on November 15,2021 in Guildford, England.

Chris Gorman | Getty Images

DJI currently employs over…

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The next WannaCry and drone hacking: Advanced persistent threats in 2023

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Kaspersky researchers presented their vision of the future for advanced persistent threats (APTs), defining the changes in the threat landscape that will emerge in 2023. Attacks on satellite technologies, mail servers, the rise of destructive attacks and leaks, drone hacking and the next big cyber epidemic are among some of the predictions for the next year.

The political turmoil of 2022 brought about a shift that will echo in cybersecurity for years to come and have a direct effect on the development of future sophisticated attacks. The 2023 forecast is based on the expertise and the activities the Kaspersky Global Research and Analysis Team (GReAT) has witnessed this year while tracking more than 900 APT groups and campaigns.

The next WannaCry and drones for proximity hacking

Statistically, some of the largest and most impactful cyber epidemics occur every six to seven years. The last such incident was the infamous WannaCry ransomware-worm, leveraging the extremely potent EternalBlue vulnerability to automatically spread to vulnerable machines. Kaspersky researchers believe the likelihood of the next WannaCry happening in 2023 is high. 

One potential reason for an event like this occurring is that the most sophisticated threat actors in the world are likely to possess at least one suitable exploit, and current global tensions greatly increase the chance a ShadowBrokers-style hack-and-leak could take place.

Major shifts will be reflected in new types of targets and attack scenarios too, as experts believe next year, we may see bold attackers and specialists adept at mixing physical-and cyber-intrusions, employing drones for proximity hacking. 

Some of the possible attack scenarios include mounting drones with sufficient tooling that would allow the collection of WPA handshakes used for offline cracking of WiFi passwords or even dropping malicious USB keys in restricted areas in the hope that a passer-by would pick them up and plug them into a machine.

Other advanced threat predictions for 2023 include:

One of the most potent attack vectors imaginable, which uses servers in key positions of the internet backbone allowing man-on-the-side…

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