The Russian "Jaguar" fourth-generation air defense early warning tethered balloon system. Profile picture
German CargoLifter CL 160 dual-purpose high-air balloon. Profile picture
U.S. Army "Battle Star" small high-altitude balloon. Profile picture
In the "Thundercloud" exercise organized by the US military last year, 8 sets of special high-altitude balloon systems appeared. It is said that these high-altitude balloon systems can carry solar cells and related reconnaissance, surveillance, and communication equipment to stay at an altitude of tens of thousands of meters for a long time, acting as "ultra-low orbit satellites".
In recent years, some countries have made a lot of efforts around the use of military balloons. In addition to continuing to "dig submarines" in reconnaissance, surveillance, communications, relay, transportation, etc., research on the use of military balloons for rocket launches and UAV group delivery is also underway.
What is the potential of military balloon systems? Why does it receive so much attention today, when weapons and equipment are known for their speed and stealth? Please look at the interpretation -
There are many types of balloons, but not many are eligible for military service. Most balloons that enter military service have a characteristic, that is, they can carry loads into the air.
Hot air balloons appear earlier than hydrogen balloons, nitrogen balloons, and helium balloons, and powered balloons such as airships appear later than unpowered hydrogen balloons. Because these balloons can be lifted into the air, they were "specially recruited" soon after their appearance, giving them tasks such as transmitting information, reconnaissance of enemy information, and even acting as ammunition delivery platforms.
The use of balloons to convey information has a long history. On the mainland, the story of Zhuge Liang's use of the "Kong Ming Lantern" to report letters when he was besieged by heavy troops has been passed down to this day. Today, this function of balloons has been greatly expanded. However, when transmitting information now, it is no longer necessary to achieve it purely through the "tossing and turning" of the balloon itself, and the role of the balloon is only an aerial platform, and the matter of transmitting information is handed over to the various payloads it carries, such as communication relay devices. Last year, the U.S. military used eight sets of high-altitude balloon systems in the "Thundercloud" exercise. This kind of balloon can fly to tens of thousands of meters in the air, in addition to optoelectronic and electronic reconnaissance, its other important role is to ensure smooth information transmission as a communication node, and even to provide aiming information for long-range precision strike firepower.
Reconnaissance of warring opponents is the "old way" of balloons. At the end of the 18th century, after the French developed a manned hot air balloon, they were used by the country's reconnaissance forces. In the confrontation with the Austrian army, the French reconnaissance personnel sat in the gondola of the military balloon "Entrepreneurship" and ascended the air, easily completing the aerial reconnaissance mission. During the Cold War, balloons retained their status as "scouts". The United States once made a kind of "spy balloon" against the Soviet Union. It is huge, with a diameter of nearly 40 meters, and the gondola is equipped with advanced cameras and positioning systems, which can take photos and reconnoiter the Soviet Union at an altitude of 18,000 meters. But in the end, because the balloon was too "free and loose" to "go with the flow", the effect was minimal.
The appearance of tethered balloons has greatly improved their ability to participate in reconnaissance missions. In the Afghan war that broke out in 2001, the British army placed balloons more than 10 meters long in the air at more than 600 meters, and the underside was fixed with steel cables. Through the signal transmission line in the cable, the ground base station can receive the information captured by the cameras and radar installed on the balloon and listen to the enemy day and night.
Nowadays, this "good height" and "far away" of the balloon have reached a new height. The balloon used in the US military's "Thundercloud" exercise has a very high lift-off altitude. Russia's tethered floating air balloon, the Jaguar high-altitude balloon, can stay in the air for a month without any technical maintenance, and can perform reconnaissance and surveillance tasks day and night. At an altitude of more than 3,000 meters, it can use the radar it carries to detect low-altitude flying targets within a radius of 300 kilometers.
Used for air defense, it can be called a "stroke of genius" for balloons. With the help of the balloon's lift, the balloon was once used to lay the "Skynet". During World War II, under the pressure of the Luftwaffe, the British army used the draging force of balloons to connect the iron cables in the middle, and the wires were suspended under the iron cables to form an air barrier. This kind of balloon defense line made it difficult for German pilots to reach the ideal bombing altitude, effectively reducing the efficiency of enemy bombing. Not only the British army, but also Japan, the Soviet Union, and the United States have also established anti-balloon units. However, because the balloon is large and easy to be attacked, the anti-balloon unit has been disbanded. In the Kosovo War, in the face of indiscriminate bombardment by the NATO forces led by the United States, the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, while defending itself with "SAM" anti-aircraft missiles and anti-aircraft guns, also invited the balloon "veteran" out. After a few hangings, the floating air balloon came into battle, setting up a blocking net over the important target. These blocking nets actually "blocked" some cruise missiles fired out of the nets.
The balloon moves with the wind, leaving room for people to imagine. In the 1840s, Austria fought against Italy and released 200 paper balloons with explosives, intending to float the balloons downwind to the Italian army positions for bombing purposes. Of course, "the east wind does not fight with Zhou Lang", and as soon as the direction of the wind changes, the plan of the Austrian army is frustrated.
In World War I, Germany made a large number of "power balloons", Zeppelin airships, to bomb the Allied forces. Unfortunately, this slow-moving behemoth is completely powerless in the face of a flexible and maneuverable aircraft. During World War II, Japan decided to use "balloon bombs". They released more than 9,000 "balloon bombs" in the direction of the United States, hoping that they would be able to cross the sea with the wind and "show their might" on american soil. However, most of these bombs "scattered" along the way, and some successful "smugglers" either failed to explode or only caused some forest fires.
Large, slow- moving, erratic, vulnerable... These features allowed the balloon to survive in the cracks of the battlefield for a considerable period of time. In particular, the emergence of new aircraft such as aircraft has greatly compressed the use of balloons. The emergence of various anti-aircraft weapons has greatly reduced the survivability of balloons.
Nowadays, the progress of science and technology has opened new doors for the use of balloons. The application of new materials and technologies enables high-altitude balloons to reach the stratosphere and avoid the threat of some anti-aircraft weapons; the application of navigation systems and artificial intelligence enables balloons to change altitude and direction by means of force to reach target airspace; the emergence of tethered balloons enables it to hold on to an airspace for a long time and perform surveillance and reconnaissance tasks; its rounded appearance, plastic material, slow movement speed, and no heat radiation and other characteristics can conceal the sky and cross the sea in the eyes of many radars; it is convenient to release, stay in the air for a long time, cost-effective, and conforms to it." Low-cost combat" features and requirements.
With many advantages and strengths, coupled with the continuous miniaturization and low energy consumption of loads such as early warning radar, optical infrared equipment, and communication relay equipment, the balloon seems to be ushering in the spring of development. There are reports that a smart balloon made of synthetic fiber materials in the United Kingdom can also mislead enemy aircraft to determine it as an attack target, which can be called the "smart version" of the anti-air balloon.
While military balloons are developing, so are the weapons and equipment they counter. Some experts believe that its biggest threat may be laser weapons. From this point of view, military balloons will still float in the cracks of the battlefield for a long time.
Text: Huang Wuxing Courtesy of: Yang Ming
Source: People's Liberation Army Daily