Air Force Counting on “Golden Horde” to Defend Against Future Air Attacks – Here’s How

Video Above: Air Force Scientist Details New, Cutting Edge Methods of Air Bomb Attack

By Kris Osborn, President,  Center for Military Modernization

(Washington D.C.) Should an enemy convoy, infantry formation or group of mechanized armored vehicles be quickly “moving to contact” on attack, the US Air Force would likely seek to attack and destroy the approaching force with long-range, precision guided bombs and air launched rockets and cruise missiles. However, in a modern and anticipated future warfare environment, an enemy force would likely be equipped with advanced, high-speed surveillance and data processing, enabling them to make adjustment to or avoid incoming air attacks.

Golden Horde

Now, the Air Force Research Laboratory is seeking to “counter” this “countermeasure” through a breakthrough “collaborative” weapons program called Golden Horde wherein weapons themselves autonomously share data between themselves in flight.

Air attacks in the future are expected to occur at exponentially faster speeds, from much greater distances and paradigm-changing precision and guidance technology. Emerging AI-enabled, information-driven modern concepts of war anticipate more dispersed, longer-range, multi-domain yet extremely precise methods of air attack. 

With this in mind, the Air Force Research Laboratory’s Golden Horde program is designed to help pioneer new methods of air attack designed to adapt to current and future threat environments wherein large numbers of dispersed targets will operate at much greater speeds, have access to fast-arriving information and an ability to adjust to or “counter air attacks.” 

While weapons developers have had great breakthrough success engineering precision-guided air weapons able to reach longer distances, adjust to new information in flight, strike moving targets and introduce new dimensions of stand-off range and precision, future threats will require US military innovators to take a step further.