The S4 Hellhound drone could be a solid contender for Trump’s unprecedented air defense endeavor.
A new variant of the Hellhound drone was unveiled at the Space and Missile Defense Symposium in Huntsville, Alabama, this week. According to reports, the Cummings Aerospace-designed unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) may soon be able to counter drone threats more vigorously, in line with US president Donald Trump’s Golden Dome project. This S4 iteration essentially embodies the capabilities of its S3 predecessor, but uniquely will incorporate a removable nose that will enable the UAV to shift between mission sets. Specifically, this adaptation to its modular architecture will enable the drone to transfer from counter-UAV to intelligence, reconnaissance, and surveillance missions more seamlessly.
According to Cummings CEO Sheila Cummings, the S4 is “really a multimission capability as well as a multilaunch platform capability, so ground-based is kind of the primary, but then the airframe and launch canister can support both an air- and sea-based launch.” Cummings added that “Mobility and multimission capability are obviously paramount to any sort of layered approach for Golden Dome,” she said. As detailed by DEFCROS, the S4 variant will embody significant upgrades in order to achieve the level of versatility required to be able to operate amidst the Golden Dome initiative. From payload versatility to increased weight and performance, the S4 could be a solid contender for Trump’s unprecedented air defense endeavor.
The Golden Dome
The Golden Dome concept mirrors Israel’s existing Iron Dome air defense apparatus. Capable of thwarting 90 percent of short-range threats, the premier layer in Israel’s multitiered air defense contingent is truly a life-saving measure. The Dome was created by Rafael Advanced Defense Systems with US backing in the early 2000s. The unparalleled air defense system is able to detect and destroy short-range projectiles like rockets and drones from a range of 2.5 miles to 90 miles. Trump’s Golden Dome initiative would undoubtedly be more complex than its Israeli namesake. The proposed multilayered defense system is conceptualized to be capable of countering a range of threats, including ballistic, cruise, and hypersonic missiles, before they are launched.
Trump’s Golden Dome idea was first publicized during the president’s joint address to Congress in March, when he asked for funding for it. On the topic, Trump said, “Israel has it, other places have it, and the United States should have it, too.” Considering Israel is roughly the size of the state of New Jersey, fielding an air defense system massive enough to cover the entire United States will be a much more complex and costlier endeavor.
According to Steven Morani, the current undersecretary of defense for acquisition and sustainment, progress to achieve the American Golden Dome apparatus is already well underway. “Consistent with protecting the homeland and per President Trump’s [executive order], we’re working with the industrial base and [through] supply chain challenges associated with standing up the Golden Dome,” Morani stated. Despite these remarks, the Pentagon has reportedly banned officials at the ongoing defense exhibition in Alabama from discussing the Golden Dome project. Only time will tell if and when this air defense shield will come to fruition.
About the author: Maya Carlin
Maya Carlin, National Security Writer with The National Interest, is an analyst with the Center for Security Policy and a former Anna Sobol Levy Fellow at IDC Herzliya in Israel. She has bylines in many publications, including The National Interest, The Jerusalem Post, and The Times of Israel. You can follow her on Twitter: @MayaCarlin.
Image: DVIDS.
