Counter-drone missile competition possible in 2025, Army officials say

HUNTSVILLE, Ala. — The U.S. Military is contemplating holding a contest in fiscal 2025 for a next-generation interceptor to take out threats from unmanned aerial methods, Brig. Gen. Frank Lozano, program government officer for missiles and area, instructed an viewers Aug. 6 on the Area and Missile Protection Symposium.

The Military makes use of its Fight Capabilities Improvement Command Aviation & Missile Heart to guage methods similar to Raytheon’s Coyote and Blue Halo’s Subsequent-Technology C-UAS Missile. However in response to Lozano, “there are different corporations on the market engaged on [counter-UAS] interceptors that may truly even have some progress potential to intercept rockets, giant caliber rockets, in addition to doubtlessly cruise missiles.”

A contest subsequent 12 months can be held “to see if there’s something on the market higher that we must be pursuing,” he stated. “[It’s] a strategy to affirm that our funding is yielding the end result that we’re making an attempt to realize.”

The Military launched an goal requirement in March 2023 by the Aviation & Missile Expertise Consortium — managed by Superior Expertise Worldwide — to develop a Lengthy-Vary Kinetic Interceptor prototype, in response to an AvMC spokesperson.

The service and the Joint Counter-small UAS Workplace are requiring the event and testing of the prototype NGCM, the spokesperson instructed Protection Information.

The distributors chosen for rapid funding got here from a pool of 16. Eleven others had been positioned in a “basket” for potential future choice, the spokesperson stated.

The Military can also be planning on holding a contest for a brand new handheld gadget to take out drones, Lozano famous.

“Inherently, a handheld system has restricted energy,” he stated, however Lozano famous the Military not too long ago noticed promising capabilities within the handheld realm throughout a fielding train with the one hundred and first Airborne Division.

Previous to a Joint Readiness Coaching Heart rotation the service offered the unit with handheld capabilities that might go up in opposition to small UAS, in response to Lozano.

A contest for a cellular flat-panel array radar to detect drone threats can also be within the works for FY25.

The Military already has such gear integrated within the Stryker fight automobile’s cellular counter-UAS system, however officers are in search of to determine a dependable system for future operations, Lozano stated.