Buying more drones is cheap and politically attractive, but it addresses only part of the problem, writes the former Parachute Regiment officer and senior associate fellow at the Henry Jackson Society
In today’s Defence Investment Plan, the Government is right to spend more money on drones. They have transformed modern warfare. The war in Ukraine has shown that small, cheap drones can destroy equipment worth millions of pounds and give soldiers a significant advantage on the battlefield.
The danger is that ministers draw the wrong lesson from Ukraine. Drones are supplementing, not replacing, conventional military equipment.
Think of the Armed Forces as a toolbox. A hammer is useful, but you cannot build an entire house with just a hammer. You also need saws, screwdrivers, drills and many other tools. The military works in exactly the same way.
Drones can locate enemy positions, attack vehicles and help protect soldiers. They cannot defend Britain’s skies against missile attacks, patrol the Atlantic, escort merchant ships, transport troops worldwide or provide nuclear deterrence.
Those tasks still require fighter aircraft, warships, submarines, tanks, missiles and highly trained personnel.
Our enemies understand this perfectly. Russia continues to build tanks while producing large numbers of drones. China is expanding the world’s largest navy while investing heavily in autonomous technology. Iran combines drones with missiles and conventional forces.
None of them regards drones as a replacement for other parts of military capability. They see them as another important capability. Britain should do the same.
There is another lesson from Ukraine. Military technology is evolving at remarkable speed.
A drone that is effective today may need replacing next year because new electronic warfare systems or counter-drone technologies have rendered it obsolete.
Defence procurement was designed for projects that lasted decades. Today’s battlefield changes in months. Britain needs a system that can buy, test and improve equipment far more quickly than it does now.
The bigger challenge, however, is one of scale. After decades of defence cuts and poor procurement, Britain is already struggling to maintain sufficient numbers of ships, combat aircraft, ammunition, missiles and armoured vehicles.
Rebuilding those capabilities is expensive, difficult and time-consuming. Buying more drones is comparatively cheap and politically attractive, but it addresses only part of the problem.
The Defence Investment Plan is a welcome start, but drones alone will not make Britain safer. Modern warfare demands both quantity and quality.
Britain needs affordable drones, world-class conventional forces, and a procurement system that keeps pace with technology. Ignoring any one of those three risks leaving the country unprepared for future conflicts.