Just about every country of any size is worried about the possibility of drone attacks against their infrastructure. Saudi Arabia is no different. Seeking to protect their oil production facilities, they contracted to buy several anti-drone systems.
Foolishly for them, they bought them from China.
Saudi Arabia has become one of the first countries in the world to acquire Chinese laser-based air defense systems and anti-air missiles, purchasing China’s SkyShield integrated counter-drone system and HQ-17E to protect key sites and expensive air defense assets from drone attacks.
But operational experience in the kingdom’s harsh environment has revealed severe limitations of the Chinese HQ-17E and Laser Weapon.
The SkyShield system uses a layered approach that combines counter-drone radars with both “hard kill” and “soft kill” options. Each battery consists of four vehicles: a 3D TWA Radar, an AESA (Active Electronically Scanned Array) counter-drone radar with three side-facing panels providing 360-degree coverage without rotation; two JN1101 counter-drone jamming vehicles, which feature both interception and electronic jamming capabilities; and the Silent Hunter Laser Directed-Energy Weapon, intended for direct destruction of drones.
However, the radar failed to provide targeting data to both the jamming and laser elements, integrating the system into a single defensive package. The HQ-17E and Laser weapon’s integrated radar fails to detect targets and does not launch interceptors on time.
The HQ-17AE is a short-range surface-to-air weapon system advertised to operate in all weather conditions and capable of intercepting targets flying at low and medium altitude. Developed by the Second Academy of the state-owned China Aerospace Science and Industry Corporation (CASIC), it is an export version of the HQ-17A, itself derived from the Russian Tor system. The HQ-17E failed to operate in Saudi Arabia because the radar could not discriminate targets when used in clutter.
Saudi Arabia procured the SkyShield as part of its broader effort to counter the rising threat of unmanned aerial attacks on critical infrastructure. The system was fielded with assistance from Chinese specialists, and its initial demonstrations showed strong results.
However, a former Saudi military officer who coordinated the project said performance has not met expectations under operational conditions.
“Despite the strong performance demonstrated during trials, in real conditions the SkyShield components have lower effectiveness than promised,” he said.
The Silent Hunter laser, developed by China Electronics Technology Group Corporation (CETC), in particular was limited by environmental factors.
“In some cases, it took between 15 and 30 minutes of continuous targeting and laser illumination to guarantee a drone kill,” the officer explained. Dust and sand disrupted optical tracking and weakened the laser beam. Continuous exposure also caused abrasion to the optical systems, while the high desert heat forced much of the system’s power into cooling rather than firing.
15-30 minutes? You’d get better results from David’s sling. And I don’t mean the Israel air defense system, I mean a guy with an actual sling, chucking rocks.
Or a Boy Scout with a BB gun. (Or whatever has replaced the Boy Scouts these days.)
The chances of a drone standing still for 30 minutes while you laser it are about as good as a 7-Eleven hot dog roller garnering three stars from Michelin.
To be fair, laser anti-drone weapons are tricky. We’re working on a couple of possibilities. Ukraine has one. The UK is working on one, tentatively slated for 2027.
So how can China have a working system if the countries they steal from haven’t fully developed one yet?
Now the Saudis have belatedly discovered what Americans already knew: China’s products are crap.
Tags: anti-drone, China, China Electronics Technology Group Corporation (CETC), Chinesium, Communism, drones, laser, Military, Saudi Arabia, SkyShield
“Global Defense Corp”, the source of this story, is a fraud and this story is a propaganda lie.
15 minutes to kill a drone? Even the smallest DJI drone can cover 10km in that amount of time. The bigger ones, which would be needed to carry a useful payload, go much faster.
Compare and contrast:
“Global Defense Corp”, the source of this story, is a fraud and this story is a propaganda lie.”
“So how can China have a working system if the countries they steal from haven’t fully developed one yet?”
I’m going with Lawrence Person on this one.
“So how can China have a working system if the countries they steal from haven’t fully developed one yet?”
The U.A.E. was sufficiently impressed with the SkyShield system’s performance against Houthi drones to purchase it in 2024. SkyShield has protected Saudi oil installations against hundreds of Houthi drones since it was installed in 2023. It was a key defensive system against the 23 June 2025 Iranian drone attacks across the Gulf and up from Yemen.
It appears that RTX Raytheon is attempting to copy SkyShield with their High Energy Laser Weapon System (HELWS). HELWS is progressing nicely with a few test fires in the UK a year ago. It is the NATO laser antidrone system furthest advanced, according to published reports.
The issue with laser interception systems is atmospheric beam attenuation, not the ridiculous anecdotes in this story. Laser beams deteriorate when they have to punch through humidity in temperate areas. So what may work in deserts probably won’t work in Europe or North America.
China is imitative, not innovative, in the main, that is true. However, the performance of the J-10 vs Rafale in real BVR air-to-air combat proves that at least some of their high tech works.
As a consequence count me as one not beleiving in the survivability of a US carrier, close enough to Taiwan to matter.
Comrade Cartridge is a tireless advocate of Russia’s advanced military technology. So when Russians deploy a Chinese-made drone interceptor because their own air defense systems have proved inadequate to the task, he is quick to show his wrath if it is revealed that the Chinese crap is just as unreliable as the Russian crap because it clearly demonstrates that Russia is governed by fools and knaves.
“Russian pro-Kremlin media outlets have released new footage showing what appears to be a Chinese-made Silent Hunter 3000 laser system deployed with Russia’s air defense forces.”
https://defence-blog.com/chinese-made-laser-weapon-spotted-in-russian-arsenal/
“Comrade Cartridge is a tireless advocate of Russia’s advanced military technology. So when Russians deploy a Chinese-made drone interceptor because their own air defense systems have proved inadequate to the task, he is quick to show his wrath if it is revealed that the Chinese crap is just as unreliable as the Russian crap because it clearly demonstrates that Russia is governed by fools and knaves.”
The Russians have been deploying laser and microwave anti-drone weapons at NPPs and other high value targets across their country for nine years now. They work, but have very short range in the Russian climate. They kill the drones, but often the sites and even the weapons stations get showered with debris.
The Russians clearly do not have enough such systems, so they buy additional units from the Chinese. Both countries’ laser weapons technology trace back to Alexander Peresvet, a Russian optical engineer. The Russians and the Chinese have not publicly disclosed which factories are making these units.
Russian press releases tell you that a laser or microwave weapon was used successfully when they describe the drowning of a drone using the anodyne terms “by technical means” [техническими средствами].
The Ukrainians claim to have deployed their laser anti-drone weapon, called Tryzub, in December. No photographs or videos of it in action have been released.
BNE Intellinews just posted a timely article today on the subject of anti-drone warfare systems rankings by country:
‘Russia’s $0.5bn anti-drone defence market second only to US’
By bne IntelliNews – September 12, 2025
The article reports on a study by SK Capital of the anti-drone systems market worldwide. The money shot:
“SK Capital estimates that Russia’s anti-drone systems market revenue reached RUB42bn ($460mn) in 2024, placing the country second worldwide with a 23% market share. The US was the leader with 35% share ($700mn), followed by China at 8% ($160mn).”