US Army to invest $7 billion in anti-drone technologies
The US Army's task force for combating drone threats has announced new contracts worth nearly $7 billion for the acquisition of diverse defense technologies. The investment aims to enable federal agencies and military units to equip themselves with counter-drone systems, emphasizing a multi-layered approach that does not rely on a single solution. The need has intensified following incidents in which American soldiers were harmed.
The US Army's task force for combating drone threats has announced a new series of contracts with a budget of nearly $7 billion. The investment is intended to acquire a variety of defense technologies, from sensors and non-kinetic means for detecting and neutralizing drones to kinetic weapons for shooting them down. The Army emphasizes that no single solution exists for the threat, and therefore a multi-layered approach was decided upon, allowing different units to build tailored defenses. The urgent need for these systems has intensified following the war in Ukraine, the situation in the Middle East, and security incidents in which American soldiers were harmed: drone attacks led to the deaths of six Americans in Kuwait in March, and three additional soldiers in Jordan in 2024. An investigation into the incident in Jordan revealed that the forces were not sufficiently prepared. As part of the effort, the task force established a marketplace where units and federal agencies can purchase systems directly, which has also been opened to international allies; Australia was the first to acquire technology through it this month.