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I am curios about the technology used. The drones as I understand are similar to what is described here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HESA_Ababil https://en.

by chvid 7y ago

I am curios about the technology used. The drones as I understand are similar to what is described here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HESA_Ababil https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HESA_Ababil How can the Houti rebels fly 10 drones hundreds of kilometers into Saudi territory? How do they pilot them? It must be a very expensive attack to undertake compared to forms of "asymmetric" warfare (say a car bomb).

howard941 7y ago
The article points out another successfully hit target was the Patriot search radar. The fiberglass airframe indicated in your link supports that capability. Autopilot code is as mentioned elsewhere open source. Scary stuff
droithomme 7y ago
Houthi drones can and do fly 900 miles carrying significant ordinance, it's happened multiple times. They started on their drone journey buying cool consumer drones on aliexpress for $100 or so and modifying. They have access to the internet and enthusiast blogs and have rapidly grown their industry. Obviously unlike quadcopters they don't rely on wifi but rather use other RF bands. These people have lived there in the desert for tens of thousands of years. They are smart people and able to understand and improve on designs. It's not particularly sophisticated, liek on the Manhattan Project level requiring state backing. There are kids doing this stuff for fun without their parents even realizing.
- TACIXAT 7y ago
  They'd need a really tall tower to remotely pilot something 900 miles off with no satellite. I think autonomous flight via gps is more realistic.
  - droithomme 7y ago
    The GPS and inertial gets the drone close enough. During the last stretch the Houthis have stated they have local guidance assist. The population in the area of the targets is significantly Shia, anti-KSA, and revolutionarily minded so it's not surprising this resource is available.
dx7tnt 7y ago
That's what made me feel like I could smell a rat... Yes the Houthis could have a go at doing this, but ultimately, it's probably going to benefit the Saudis because the oil price is now going to go wild as soon as the markets open. I read that up to 50% of their capacity could be affected. It's in the Saudis interest for the oil price to rise and this is a good way of doing it without involving OPEC or anyone else.

by chvid 7y ago

howard941 7y ago

The article points out another successfully hit target was the Patriot search radar. The fiberglass airframe indicated in your link supports that capability. Autopilot code is as mentioned elsewhere open source. Scary stuff

droithomme 7y ago

Houthi drones can and do fly 900 miles carrying significant ordinance, it's happened multiple times. They started on their drone journey buying cool consumer drones on aliexpress for $100 or so and modifying. They have access to the internet and enthusiast blogs and have rapidly grown their industry. Obviously unlike quadcopters they don't rely on wifi but rather use other RF bands. These people have lived there in the desert for tens of thousands of years. They are smart people and able to understand and improve on designs. It's not particularly sophisticated, liek on the Manhattan Project level requiring state backing. There are kids doing this stuff for fun without their parents even realizing.

TACIXAT 7y ago
They'd need a really tall tower to remotely pilot something 900 miles off with no satellite. I think autonomous flight via gps is more realistic.
- droithomme 7y ago
  The GPS and inertial gets the drone close enough. During the last stretch the Houthis have stated they have local guidance assist. The population in the area of the targets is significantly Shia, anti-KSA, and revolutionarily minded so it's not surprising this resource is available.

dx7tnt 7y ago

That's what made me feel like I could smell a rat... Yes the Houthis could have a go at doing this, but ultimately, it's probably going to benefit the Saudis because the oil price is now going to go wild as soon as the markets open. I read that up to 50% of their capacity could be affected. It's in the Saudis interest for the oil price to rise and this is a good way of doing it without involving OPEC or anyone else.