"This pilot program will test these capabilities in an operational environment so we can understand how best to integrate and sustain them to defend the homeland," Brig. Gen. Matt Ross, director of JIATF-401, said in the Pentagon release today.
Selected vendors and the systems they will field
The Defense Department announced it has picked four vendors to participate in a directed energy pilot program focused on counter-drone operations. The systems and vendors named in the Pentagon release are: AeroVironment with its Palletized HEL system; Epirus with its Leonidas HPM system; Kord with its Firefly HEL system; and Boeing with its Compact Laser Weapon System. The announcement framed the effort around expanding the "operational use" of high-energy laser (HEL) and high-powered microwave (HPM) capabilities within the homeland.
JIATF-401 will run the pilot under a statutory mandate
The pilot program was ordered by fiscal 2026’s National Defense Authorization Act and will be run by the Army-led Joint Interagency Task Force (JIATF) 401, according to the Pentagon release. The task force's stated mission for this effort is operational testing to learn how best to integrate and sustain HEL and HPM systems for homeland defense.
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See what we buildCoordination with FAA, U.S. Northern Command and the services
The task force will conduct the pilot program in "close coordination" with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), US Northern Command and the military services, the release said. That explicit coordination is part of the announcement's emphasis on testing systems in an operational environment while managing risks to the National Airspace System and military operations.
February El Paso incident, New Mexico demo, and risk findings
The announcement framed the partnership with the FAA in the context of a February incident in which the FAA temporarily closed airspace around the El Paso, Texas, airport after a miscommunication among federal agencies about use of a counter-drone laser by Customs and Border Patrol. It was later discovered that the laser was on loan from the Army.
Following that episode, the task force partnered with the FAA to conduct a risk assessment during a HEL demonstration in New Mexico. The release states the assessment revealed the system "posed a minimal risk to the National Airspace System," and that the demo resulted in a joint agreement for a laser system to protect the southern border.
December "shoot off," on-the-spot buys, and additional evaluations
JIATF-401 will host a "shoot off" for the pilot program in December, the release said. As previously reported by Breaking Defense, Brig. Gen. Ross said at the time that solutions that perform well could be bought on the spot. The DoD and the task force will continue to "evaluate" additional directed energy systems beyond the four selected vendors, per the release.
What this means for AeroVironment, Epirus, Kord, Boeing, and the FAA
- AeroVironment, Epirus, Kord, and Boeing: Selection places each vendor's system into an operational test pipeline overseen by JIATF-401 and opens the possibility of near-term procurement if systems prove effective during the December shoot off.
- The FAA: The agency's involvement in risk assessment and the New Mexico demo, and the stated "close coordination" going forward, highlight its central role in assessing National Airspace System risk and in negotiating operational agreements such as the joint laser agreement for the southern border.
The Pentagon framed the pilot as a practical, test-and-learn step toward homeland deployment of HEL and HPM counter-drone tools. The coming months — the New Mexico follow-ups, the December shoot off and any on-the-spot buys — will determine which systems move from demonstration to operational use and which additional technologies the task force chooses to evaluate.
