Useful conclusions drawn from Aspides

Greek naval officers have taken valuable lessons from their experience in the European operation Aspides in the Red Sea in dealing with unmanned aerial threats. To date, Greek vessels have downed three Houthi UAVs. One of these was brought down by the homegrown Centaur anti-drone system, developed by the Hellenic Aerospace Industry (HAI) and installed on the Psara frigate. 

However, up until these shootdowns, the two frigates (Hydra and Psara) deployed in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden had tested the anti-drone systems for early detection of threats and interruption of communication between the UAV and its operator. With greater power and range, the HAI's Centaur proved more effective, achieving a shootdown at zero cost when allied ships had to launch Aster missiles at a cost of several million euros per shot.

The operation has afforded Greek officers important data,...