The Pentagon has selected five military installations to test new energy-based defense systems designed to knock hostile drones out of the sky, with two bases along the Mexican border receiving priority deployment as unmanned aerial threats surge in the region.
Fort Bliss in Texas and Marine Corps Air Station Yuma in Arizona will join Joint Base Lewis-McChord in Washington, Fort Liberty in North Carolina, and Naval Station Norfolk in Virginia in the pilot program, according to defense officials. The installations will receive directed energy weapons—high-powered microwave and laser systems—capable of disabling small drones that increasingly threaten military operations and border security.
The border installations face a rising tide of surveillance drones launched by Mexican cartels to monitor U.S. law enforcement movements and facilitate drug smuggling operations. Defense officials say the technology will allow ground commanders to neutralize these threats without firing kinetic weapons that could escalate tensions or cause collateral damage in populated areas near the international boundary.
Directed energy systems destroy or disable drones by overloading their electronics with concentrated microwave pulses or physically damaging them with focused laser beams. Unlike traditional air defense missiles that can cost hundreds of thousands of dollars per shot, these systems operate at pennies per engagement once installed, making them economical for countering the cheap commercial drones that now dominate low-altitude airspace threats.
The pilot program comes as the military confronts an explosion in drone threats worldwide. Small unmanned aircraft have proven devastatingly effective in Ukraine, where both sides use them to direct artillery, drop munitions, and conduct reconnaissance. American bases in the Middle East face nightly drone attacks from Iran-backed militias, while Chinese drones routinely probe U.S. installations in the Pacific.
But the deployment to Fort Bliss and Yuma signals the Pentagon’s recognition that the southern border has become a theater requiring advanced military technology. The bases sit at the center of human trafficking and drug smuggling corridors where cartels have adopted military-grade surveillance capabilities.
The systems will undergo a year-long evaluation period during which commanders will assess their effectiveness, reliability in harsh environments, and integration with existing air defense networks. If successful, the technology could be rolled out to additional installations, particularly along the southern border where conventional air defense systems are politically and tactically problematic.
Defense officials expect the pilot installations to be operational within six months, with full testing protocols in place by early 2027.
Key Points
- Two of five bases selected for anti-drone pilot program sit along Mexican border facing cartel surveillance threats
- Directed energy weapons use lasers and microwaves to disable drones at fraction of cost of traditional missiles
- Technology addresses surge in small drone threats worldwide while avoiding kinetic weapons near populated border areas
https://www.defensenews.com/industry/techwatch/2026/05/11/5-us-bases-selected-for-anti-drone-pilot-program/ – May 12, 2026
