Hegseth Orders Pentagon to Accelerate Counter Drone Capabilities

The Department of War is taking new steps to accelerate the development and use of anti-drone systems across the U.S. military, with a memorandum by Secretary of War Pete Hegseth directing the Pentagon to remove “unnecessary barriers” that cause delays in counter-drone capabilities.

The Pentagon said on Friday that Hegseth’s Sept. 28 directive will accelerate the “lawful, safe, and effective employment” of capabilities developed to defend against unmanned aircraft systems.

Army Lt. Gen. Joseph Jarrard, deputy commander of U.S. Northern Command, warned in August that U.S. military bases were “ill-equipped” to defend against swarms of small attack drones.

The Pentagon’s new directive requires approval authorities to treat delays in anti-drone capabilities as “an operational risk.” In his memorandum to senior Pentagon leadership, Hegseth described small unmanned systems as “the defining threat of our time.”

Hegseth directed officials to reduce timelines for requirements in anti-drone capabilities by using relevant prior approvals, testing data and risk mitigations, and using interim approvals in cases of low or manageable risk while the department completes long-term documentation.

Hegseth warned that the Pentagon’s current approval for anti-drone technology is often delayed by slow processes that place U.S. military members at risk.

Under the requirements outlined in the memorandum, the Pentagon will establish a department-wide process to reduce approval timelines for new anti-drone capabilities from months to days or weeks. In addition, military services will not be required to conduct duplicative weapons safety reviews unless new risks are created.

The memorandum is part of the Pentagon’s efforts to implement President Donald Trump’s executive order 14305, “Restoring American Airspace Sovereignty,” which was issued in June 2025. The executive order directed the federal government to “unleash American drone dominance” and to defend military installations and protect the American public from aerial threats.

In the memorandum, Hegseth warned that America’s adversaries are quickly developing low-cost unmanned systems and are using them to “surveil, disrupt, and attack.”

“We will not answer a fast-moving threat with a slow-moving bureaucracy.”

While Hegseth’s memorandum directed the Pentagon to remove bureaucratic delays, he maintained that the War Department would not take unnecessary risks or cut corners on safety or legal issues.

Hegseth added that the approval process for anti-drone capabilities needs to be just as fast as the Pentagon’s process for developing and deploying the technology.

Brig. Gen. Terry Tillis, who leads the German-based 7th Army Training Command, recently told reporters that some U.S. soldiers were sent to Ukraine earlier this year to learn more about drone warfare, which Ukraine has used to counter Russia’s invasion over the past four years.

Tillis also said Ukrainians were embedded with U.S. Army soldiers for training exercises to help them employ drone technology.

U.S. military bases have been repeatedly targeted by drones over the past few years. Army Brig. Gen. Matt Ross, director of the Joint Interagency Task Force 401, previously suggested that the United States could mitigate potential drone threats with a layered defense.

In response to the threats posed by drone technology, the Pentagon established Joint Interagency Task Force 401 in Aug. 2025, tasking it with protecting U.S. national airspace.

The Trump administration also directed the Federal Aviation Administration to expedite its rule-making process for restrictions on drone flights over sensitive locations.

Earlier this year, Joint Interagency Task Force 401 selected five military installations to test whether high-energy lasers and high-powered microwave systems could be used to defend military bases and other critical locations.

Last month, U.S. Northern Command said the Joint Task Force–Southern Border had taken down over 300 unmanned aircraft systems since the start of this year by using both kinetic and non-kinetic systems.