Anti-Drone Shotgun loads?

Image from Ministry of Defense of Ukraine 

The Russian-Ukraine is the first drone war. Not the first war in which drones have been used (arguably WWII), but the first war in which drones may have accounted for the largest proportion of casualties. Defense against drones is an imperative, and many different approaches are being tried.

One approach this correspondent has considered is using Tungsten Super Shot (TSS) in ordinary shotguns. On one forum, a commenter stated a Ukrainian soldier had obtained a Keltec KS7 to use for drone defense. Shotguns have obvious utility for close in drone defense, against smallish drones. Many drones are small quad-rotor designs the size of a pheasant. Sizes rang upward to drones as large as commercial jet planes. A shotgun defense might work against drones as large as geese.

Ordinary lead shotgun loads have very limited range. The pellets are lead. Significant improvement could be made by using TSS shot in shotguns. TSS shot is very hard and very spherical. It is about 2/3 more dense than lead, about 18-18.5 grams per cubic centimeter. Lead is about 11.3 grams per cubic centimeter. Because of the hardness, symmetry and density, TSS holds tight patterns at long range, often with little choke. TSS #5 shot is considered to have enough energy at 105 yards to bring down geese. It should have enough energy to disrupt small drones, if it hits a vital component. There are 106 #5 TSS shot per ounce. It is easy to fit 1.5 ounces of TSS in an ordinary 2.75 inch 12 gauge shotgun shell. Tungsten has been used as a military projectile for years. TSS may have been developed for military purposes, such as in anti-aircraft missiles.

Drones can be very difficult to bring down. About 50 years ago, this correspondent was supporting and witnessed a test at Hunter Liggett Military Reservation in California. About 60 troops were on a firing line. Most were armed with M16 rifles. As I recall, there were also a pair of M60 machine guns. A drone, a small radio-controlled plane, was the target. The wingspan was about 4-5 feet. It had a gas engine and a propeller. It was operated to come perpendicularly at the line of fire from about 300 yards out.  It was probably 50 yards high when it passed over the center of the line.  It seemed reasonably fast, probably over 70 mph.

As the drone approached, the entire line opened up with automatic weapons fire. The drone was disabled about once out of a dozen runs. It was hit more often, but only the engine, the prop, and controls were vital. A bullet or three through a wing did not bring it down.

Small quad-rotor drones may be more vulnerable. Break a rotor or a motor and they will likely come down. Hit the processor, or maybe a battery, and they will likely come down. Rifles and machine guns have plenty of power, but not sufficient projectiles to be a serious threat, unless they are tied to a fire control system with radar or lidar.

Shotguns and TSS shot offer a cheap possibility for short range protection against small drones. Another possibility is to mount a shotgun on a hunter-killer drone as a way to shoot down other drones. A potential range of a hundred meters seems useful. Targeting could be built into the drones software, or relayed back to an operator for shooting decisions.  Multiple jamming strategies are driving drones toward more autonomous operation. It would not be a difficult test for Ukraine to obtain a couple of drones, a couple of kilos of TSS shot, and a couple of shotguns to see which, if any, loads might be effective as a drone defense.

It may be that shotguns and TSS shot are already being used as drone defense weapons in the Russia-Ukraine war. If readers have any knowledge of such use, please let us know in the comments.

©2025 by Dean Weingarten: Permission to share is granted when this notice and link are included.

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