Beyond the Hype: Why Drones Cannot Replace Artillery
by Bill Murray
05.05.2025 at 06:00am
Beyond the Hype: Why Drones Cannot Replace Artillery Image
The relentless footage emerging from the Ukrainian battlefield, dominated by images of drones striking tanks, disrupting troop movements, and providing crucial reconnaissance, has fueled a narrative, often breathless and uncritical, that unmanned systems are poised to replace conventional artillery. This idea, however, represents a fundamental misreading of the realities of modern warfare.
While drones undeniably offer valuable and evolving capabilities, they are best understood as powerful additions to, rather than substitutes for, the sustained, massive, and versatile firepower required in large-scale combat. A current, somewhat uncritical embrace of drone technology within the U.S. Army, driven by a desire for innovation and a perceived cost-effectiveness, risks diverting attention and resources from the vital modernization of artillery, a critical need for facing potential conflicts with peer or near-peer adversaries. The allure of a “drone-centric” future must be tempered with a clear-eyed assessment of the enduring strengths of traditional fires and the inherent limitations of unmanned aerial systems.
The U.S. Army faces a real and present danger of drawing the wrong conclusions from the ongoing war in Ukraine, and from the broader proliferation of drone technology. The tactical successes achieved with inexpensive commercial drones and first-person view (FPV) systems are undeniably appealing, offering a seemingly low-cost means of achieving disproportionate effects.
https://smallwarsjournal.com/2025/05/05/beyond-the-hype-why-drones-cannot-replace-artillery/
