Defense System for Protecting Oil Refinery Assets Against Enemy UAVs

During the cold war we had a some very good anti-aircraft and land based mobile missile defense systems. Could we take one of these systems and scale it down, miniaturize it and use it to defend and protect our oil refineries, infrastructure and national security interests? Could we take let's say a smaller and lighter version of the "Lance" mobile missile systems of the cold war, with a similar theory and place it on a Sandia "Sarge" type tiny mobile autonomous unit. Then employ these robotic security systems along defendable perimeter locations?.

We could put them on the border when we attack Canada and take some property off their hands for aiding and abedding International Terrorists, so if they tried to fly one of those little Israeli UAVs they are buying over our border we would dust it immediately. Just kidding, but we need to be thinking defense and offence here to have a proper discussion on anti-attack defense systems. Obviously we are not going to war with Canada, but we do have our enemies in the Middle East harboring International Terrorists and some State Sponsored Insurgents attacking our troops in Iraq? Could we use such a system like this there to prevent intrusions over the borders? Perhaps we could, but how you ask?.

Well lets first look at the issues with guarding oil assets as the International Terrorists wish to take down our economy using oil as a weapon knowing we need the oil to run our civilization. If we pay humans to carry weapons to patrol a perimeter of let's say an oil refinery then will they be able to take out a single mission UAV which will self destruct and explode on impact and even if they did hit it, which is highly unlikely, could they take out a swarm of them? The answer is no, you have just lost you oil refinery asset.Now then let us re-think a man-portable stinger missile type system, when you may have to worry about a swarm of these little UAVs, each with 5-10 lbs of plastic explosives or even a smaller payload per explosion of two-hand grenades, you see the problem.

The International Terrorists may not be able to take out your entire refinery, but they might get lucky and start an uncontrollable fire.Remember those Refinery fires outside of London, early reports, which were later denied said that an aircraft flew over prior to the explosions? Well did they throw something out; if so what. Was that aircraft manned or was it a small UAV; if so could it have been shot down with an intercepting UAV devise or a man-portable unit; perhaps? But only if the security force was alerted, actually saw it and focus, identify and fire in time.Could a man sit and wait to fire it? Do you want to put a unit such as this into the hands of a civilian $10 per hour security guard? Not me? That type of weapon in the hands of the wrong person who knew and was trained how to use it could be used to take out a commercial airliner. Not funny.

Yet if the International Terrorists continue to attack non-military soft targets for PR and oil or natural gas assets we have serious issues as we must defend the flows of our civilization right? So how about an Aerostat or UAV which is tethered on a track with a system on it to detect such an incoming threat which would interact with a robotic perimeter defense system then you could potentially defeat anything which comes close and thus defend such an asset? Think on this.

By: Lance Winslow