Pentagon picks 4 vendors for counter-drone directed energy pilot program

An Opterra fixed wing drone flies before it is shot down by a 12 gauge shotgun manufactured by Genesis Arms. (Photo by Carley Welch/ Breaking Defense)

WASHINGTON — The Defense Department today announced it has selected four vendors for its directed energy pilot program — an effort aimed at expanding the “operational use” of high-energy laser (HEL) and high-powered microwave (HPM) capabilities within the homeland, according to a Pentagon release .

Ordered by fiscal 2026’s National Defense Authorization Act , the pilot program will be run by the Army-led Joint Interagency Task Force (JIATF) 401 , according to the release . The four selected vendors are AeroVironment, with its Palletized HEL system; Epirus, with its Leonidas HPM system; Kord, with its Firefly HEL system; and Boeing, with its Compact Laser Weapon System.

“This pilot program will test these capabilities in an operational environment so we can understand how best to integrate and sustain them to defend the homeland,” Brig. Gen. Matt Ross, directo r of JIATF-401 , said in the Pentagon release today.

The task force will conduct the pilot program in “close coordination” with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), US Northern Command and the military service s, according to the announcement.

The partnership follows a February incident in which the FAA temporarily closed airspace around the El Paso, Texas, airport due to a miscommunication between federal agencies about use of a counter-drone laser by Customs and Border Patrol. It was later discovered that the laser was on loan from the Army.

Since then, the task force has partnered with the FAA to conduct a risk assessment during a HEL demo in New Mexico, which revealed that the system “posed a minimal risk to the National Airspace System,” today’s release said. The demo also resulted in a joint agreement for a laser system to protect the southern border.

As Breaking Defense previously reported , JIATF-401 will host a “shoot off” for the pilot program in December. Solutions that perform well could be bought on the spot, Ross said at the time. At the demo, the DoD and the task force will continue to “evaluate” additional directed energy systems beyond t hose selected today, per the release.

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一架Opterra固定翼无人机在飞行途中被Genesis Arms公司生产的12号口径霰弹枪击落。（图片由Carley Welch/Breaking Defense提供）

华盛顿——据五角大楼发布的消息，美国国防部今天宣布，已为其定向能试点项目选定了四家供应商。该项目旨在扩大高能激光 (HEL) 和高功率微波 (HPM) 能力在国土范围内的“作战使用”。

根据新闻稿，这项试点项目由2026财年《国防授权法案》授权，将由陆军牵头的联合跨部门特遣部队（JIATF）401负责实施。四家入选供应商分别是：AeroVironment公司（其产品为托盘式高能激光武器系统）、Epirus公司（其产品为Leonidas高功率微波导弹系统）、Kord公司（其产品为Firefly高能激光武器系统）以及波音公司（其产品为紧凑型激光武器系统）。

“这项试点计划将在作战环境中测试这些能力，以便我们了解如何最好地整合和维持这些能力，从而保卫国土，”JIATF-401 指挥官马特·罗斯准将在今天五角大楼发布的新闻稿中表示。

根据公告，该工作组将与联邦航空管理局 (FAA)、美国北方司令部和各军种“密切协调”开展试点项目。

此次合作源于今年2月发生的一起事件：由于联邦机构之间就海关与边境保护局使用反无人机激光器一事沟通不畅，美国联邦航空管理局（FAA）一度关闭了德克萨斯州埃尔帕索机场周围的空域。事后发现，该激光器是从美国陆军借用的。

此后，该工作组与美国联邦航空管理局 (FAA) 合作，在新墨西哥州进行了一次高能激光 (HEL) 演示，并开展了风险评估。今天的新闻稿称，评估结果表明，该系统“对国家空域系统构成的风险极小”。此次演示还促成了一项联合协议，即部署一套激光系统来保护南部边境。

正如《防务新闻》此前报道，JIATF-401将于12月举办试点项目的“实弹射击测试”。罗斯当时表示，表现优异的解决方案可能会当场采购。根据新闻稿，在演示中，国防部和特遣部队将继续“评估”除今日选定的系统之外的其他定向能系统。

生物防御就是部队防护：今日做好准备，明日应对。

一位功勋卓著的战斗机飞行员兼生物技术公司首席执行官倡导在下一次危机到来之前，为应对新型病毒威胁做好准备。