China Turns to NI-HP1000 High-Power Microwave System to Defeat Drone Swarms.

Novasky is pitching the NI-HP1000 as a way to stop drone swarms before they can overwhelm air defenses or threaten critical sites. By using high-power microwave energy instead of missiles or guns, it targets the growing battlefield problem of massed low-cost drones with a system built to defeat multiple threats at once.

The system is designed to shut down the electronics of small drones across a defined engagement area, giving operators a non-kinetic option against clustered aerial attacks. That makes it relevant to the wider shift toward layered air defense, where militaries need scalable counters to swarms, stronger infrastructure protection, and faster responses to the spread of unmanned threats.

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The NI-HP1000 operates as a short-range microwave effector with 360-degree coverage, rapid scanning, and repeated emission capability, designed to neutralize threats within the inner defensive layer once they reach close proximity. (Picture source: Army Recognition)

Novasky, headquartered in Changsha, China, structures the NI-HP1000 as part of a broader counter-unmanned aerial system architecture combining detection, tracking, and electronic defeat. The concept relies on a four-sided array radar for wide-area surveillance, supported by an electro-optical tracking unit that refines identification and engagement. The microwave effector itself operates as the terminal layer, acting once targets have been localized and tracked. This integration reflects a growing emphasis on sensor fusion and shortened engagement cycles, particularly in environments where small drones operate at low altitude, often below the effective envelope of traditional air-defense systems.

The NI-HP1000 is publicly showcased by Novasky at Defence Services Asia DSA 2026 in Kuala Lumpur, where the company highlights its role against swarm threats and complex low-altitude incursions. According to the manufacturer’s technical documentation, the system forms part of a coordinated chain that includes the NI-R8000D array radar detection equipment and the NI-C5000 electro-optical tracking system.

The NI-R8000D radar operates in the X-band between 9.2 GHz and 9.8 GHz and provides 360-degree azimuth coverage with elevation from -5 degrees to 50 degrees. It is credited with detecting targets with a radar cross-section of 0.01 square meters at a distance of up to 10 kilometers, while maintaining angular accuracy within 0.3 degrees and range accuracy within 5 meters. The system is also designed to process at least 512 target batches, which reflects a focus on dense aerial environments where multiple drones may appear simultaneously and require continuous tracking updates.

The NI-C5000 electro-optical tracking unit complements radar detection by providing visual and infrared confirmation. It integrates a 640×512 thermal imager and a 1920×1080 visible-light sensor, along with a laser rangefinder covering distances from 100 to 4,000 meters. The turret allows continuous 360-degree rotation and elevation from -20 degrees to +85 degrees. Novasky indicates that a small UAV measuring 0.3 meters by 0.3 meters can be tracked beyond 6 kilometers in thermal imaging and beyond 5 kilometers in visible light. These parameters allow operators to maintain target identification and reduce ambiguity, particularly in cluttered or urbanized environments.

At the core of the system, the NI-HP1000 microwave effector delivers the engagement effect. It provides full azimuth coverage and an elevation envelope from -15 degrees to 70 degrees, with a working range of at least 1 kilometer. Antenna scanning speed reaches at least 20 degrees per second, while power consumption is limited to 20 kilowatts. The system supports repeated emissions, with at least 10 continuous-operation waves, a maximum continuous operation interval of 60 seconds, and a recharge cycle of under 30 minutes. These characteristics indicate a short-range defensive role, intended to act within the inner layer of a protected zone once threats have approached critical proximity.

The operational principle relies on high-energy microwave emission directed toward incoming drones. Instead of destroying the airframe, the system targets internal electronic components such as semiconductors, communication modules, and onboard sensors. This interaction can disrupt or fail critical subsystems, resulting in loss of control, navigation errors, or mission abort. The effect is therefore functional rather than purely physical, which reduces the requirement for precise targeting and enables engagement of several drones within the same beam coverage.

The NI-HP1000 is designed to operate under conditions where time and volume dominate the engagement equation. The use of electromagnetic energy allows near-instantaneous interaction with targets, eliminating delays associated with projectile flight. In addition, the system can adjust its beam coverage dynamically, allowing it to address multiple drones within a sector without sequential engagements. This approach is particularly relevant against swarm tactics, where saturation rather than individual performance defines the threat. The limitation remains the engagement distance, which confines the system to close-in defense and necessitates integration with longer-range detection and interception layers.

The growing visibility of systems such as the NI-HP1000 reflects a broader shift in how states approach drone defense. The spread of low-cost UAVs has created a demand for solutions capable of handling repeated incursions and large numbers of targets without exhausting defensive resources. High-power microwave weapons, alongside laser-based systems, are increasingly considered for this role because they offer the potential to engage multiple drones simultaneously and reduce the risk of saturation that can overwhelm conventional defenses. Even so, these technologies are not a standalone answer. Effective protection still depends on a multi-layered architecture combining early warning, electronic warfare, directed energy, and kinetic interceptors to address the full range of threats now observed in operational theaters.