At the Counter-UAS Technology USA conference in Washington, D.C., C-UAS Hub Editor Adam Jeffs sat down with Julie Balduf, Deputy Branch Chief AFCENT A38 Counter-UAS, to discuss how the Air Force is adapting its counter-drone posture to address growing threats across the CENTCOM area of responsibility.
The conversation focused on the unique challenges of protecting U.S. air bases in the Middle East, where GPS-guided and “dark” drones operating without RF control present persistent risks. Balduf outlined how AFCENT is balancing immediate force protection requirements with longer-term efforts to modernize command and control and integrate new capabilities.
Jeffs and Balduf discuss:
- AFCENT’s responsibility for defending U.S. Air Force bases across the CENTCOM region.
- The Group 3 UAS threat and the operational gap between traditional air and missile defense and counter-small UAS.
- The transition toward a new system-of-systems approach through SUADS.
- Challenges of operating multiple C2 architectures.
- Lessons being drawn from Ukraine, including FPV and tethered drone employment.
- The importance of intelligence-driven planning and layered defense concepts.
