The U.S. Department of Defense has awarded AeroVironment a contract worth up to $500 million to provide commercial counter-drone technology over the next three years, underscoring the military’s continued efforts to strengthen defenses against small unmanned aerial systems.
The award was announced in the Pentagon’s daily contract notices, with the U.S. Army Contracting Command Detroit Arsenal serving as the contracting activity. According to the announcement, work locations and funding will be determined on a task-order basis.
Focus on affordable counter-drone capabilities
The contract comes as the U.S. military seeks to expand its inventory of cost-effective counter-drone systems following lessons learned from recent conflicts, including the Iran war, which highlighted challenges in defending against large numbers of inexpensive drones.
Senior defense officials have increasingly emphasized the need to reduce what they describe as the “cost curve,” where high-value air defense missiles have been used to defeat relatively inexpensive one-way attack drones such as Iran’s Shahed systems.
AeroVironment manufactures a range of unmanned and counter-unmanned systems, including the Switchblade loitering munition and the LOCUST directed-energy laser system.
Earlier this week, the company reported record fourth-quarter revenue, with its share price rising following its earnings announcement and again after news of the Army contract.
AeroVironment President and CEO Wahid Nawabi said the company remains focused on increasing production capacity
“We remain focused on executing with excellence and strengthening our supply chain to accelerate the commercialization of our platforms,” Nawabi said. “AV is well-positioned to capture the rising global demand across lethal and non-lethal drones, counter-UAS, space and advanced technologies and deliver long-term shareholder value.”
Contract details remain limited
The Pentagon has released few details about the agreement beyond its overall value and duration. Spokespeople for AeroVironment and Joint Interagency Task Force 401, the Defense Department’s counter-drone organization, did not provide additional information.
The contract follows ongoing testing of AeroVironment’s LOCUST laser weapon, which the company says can engage drones at a cost of as little as $3 per shot, compared with significantly higher costs associated with conventional air defense interceptors.
Earlier this year, LOCUST was tested at White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico after it was involved in an airspace closure incident in Texas. During a separate incident, U.S. Customs and Border Protection used a Pentagon-loaned laser system to destroy what was later identified as Mylar balloons near El Paso. In another case that month, U.S. troops mistakenly shot down a Customs and Border Protection drone that had been launched without notifying the military task force overseeing operations along the U.S.-Mexico border.
The incidents prompted criticism from lawmakers and contributed to a subsequent agreement between the Pentagon and the Federal Aviation Administration confirming that directed-energy systems could be operated safely in U.S. airspace.
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Post Image Credit: AV
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