The Pentagon is moving to order 30,000 one-way attack drones as part of its $1.1 billion Drone Dominance Program (DDP).
This follows the conclusion of “Gauntlet I,” a high-stakes combat-readiness evaluation held from 17 February to 4 March 2026 at Fort Moore (formerly Fort Benning), Georgia.
The Pentagon invited 25 vendors to demonstrate low-cost, “attritable” drones capable of missions such as 10 km strikes in open territory and 1 km strikes in urban environments.
Rapid Deployment: Initial orders are expected immediately following the test results, with the first deliveries reaching operational units within approximately 2.5 months (by July 2026).
The push for mass procurement was accelerated by the first confirmed U.S. combat use of kamikaze drones—specifically the LUCAS (Low-Cost Unmanned Combat Attack System)—against targets in Iran during Operation Epic Fury in late February 2026.
Systems like the LUCAS cost roughly $35,000, offering a sustainable alternative to multi-million dollar missiles previously used to intercept cheap enemy drones.
The Department of War is now treating small drones as “consumables,” similar to ammunition, allowing lower-level commanders to procure and deploy them directly.
The program aims to field tens of thousands of drones in 2026 and scale to hundreds of thousands by 2027 to counter the mass of adversaries like China.
Key focus areas include standardizing munitions safety and ensuring datalinks remain effective in GPS-denied or jammed environments.
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