The military and federal law enforcement officials are continuing their efforts to expand and develop the country’s counter-drone capabilities as the threat evolves.
The increased use of commercially available small drones has raised significant concerns about local laws, jurisdictions, and how to intercept unmanned systems that pose threats in urban areas. Earlier this year, War Secretary Pete Hegseth announced the formation of Joint Interagency Task Force 401, a new interagency group meant to spearhead the effort.
“What I would tell you is that as I look at this threat, I think the threat of small UAS is the defining threat of our time, and we have to improve our ability to protect against those unmanned systems,” Army Brig. Gen. Matt Ross, JIATF-401 director, told reporters Friday.
“We have to keep pace with the growing challenge to maintain our lethality on the battlefield while also protecting American citizens and our critical infrastructure here at home,” he added. “Our formations must be able to detect, track, identify, and defeat these systems anywhere on the planet.”
Ross’s goal is to “layer our defenses by integrating sensors, both kinetic and nonkinetic effectors, and battle management systems into a responsive, interoperable network.”
Law enforcement and task force members have said the 2026 World Cup, which will be hosted in 16 cities across North America, and the 2028 Summer Olympics, could be targets.
The task force has been working closely with other agencies to prepare for threats during the World Cup, “to make sure that they have an informed picture of the threat and understanding of what these systems can and cannot do, make sure that they have access to counter-UAS capability,” Ross said.
Army Secretary Dan Driscoll and members of the task force participated in a symposium last week hosted by the Joint Task Force-National Capital Region at Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall alongside civilian law enforcement and representatives from the World Cup host cities.
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“They should use every tool at their disposal to prevent these attacks, and that includes active patrolling, that includes putting out notices to the population about not bringing your drones to the game,” he said, adding that law enforcement should prosecute violators to the fullest extent of the law.
Ross recently acknowledged that there were more than 3,000 drone incursions along the southern border last year. There have also been several incidents in recent months of drone incursions in Europe, which have shut down several airports temporarily. None of these incidents resulted in casualties.
