Dominating drone defense
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The U.S. Defense Department is doubling down on drone-neutralizing technologies in its latest version of Replicator, which quietly rolled out Monday morning.
Why it matters: The initiative is the clearest sign of Pentagon priorities.
- Unmanned aerial systems are killing and maiming scores of people across the world, eluding even the most sophisticated air defenses.
- Exchanges in Eastern Europe dominate headlines. But just months ago an attack drone hit Tower 22, a desert installation in Jordan, killing three U.S. troops and injuring dozens more.
- Meanwhile, the Navy expended more than $1 billion in precious munitions dealing with Houthi attacks in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden.
Driving the news: Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin issued guidance about Replicator 2 on Sept. 27. The memo was made public today.
- Austin said the narrow focus will help overcome production capacity and innovation issues. "Meaningfully improved" protections against small drones are expected within two years of Replicator 2 funding.
- Defense Innovation Unit director Doug Beck will lead the charge alongside Bill LaPlante, the Pentagon's chief weapons buyer. (The DIU did not immediately comment on the new project.)
- LaPlante hinted at his thinking in a discussion with reporters in August: "You have everything from the kinetic to the non-kinetic. And then you have things that you can do even before the launch ever happens."
Between the lines: Replicator details are closely guarded. Exactly what is being bought is rarely disclosed.
- Jonathan Moneymaker, the CEO at defense contractor BlueHalo, told me the Pentagon's messaging confirms a "long-held belief that reliably defending against swarms of drones is an absolute priority" for the future of warfare.
Flashback: Deputy Defense Secretary Kathleen Hicks unveiled the OG Replicator last year.
- Its goal is to quickly field thousands of cheap drones to counter China's massive stockpiles.
- Replicator 2 is the other side of the coin.
My thought bubble: This could be the push that gets powerful laser and microwave weapons widely adopted. Leaders across the services wanted them in hand yesterday.
Go deeper: U.S. Army eyes drone-soaked Middle East to refine energy weapons
