Counter-drone policy—not technology—is keeping U.S. agencies from responding more effectively to the reported drone sightings along the East Coast, U.S. officials said Tuesday. However, this lack of action is not deterring makers of anti-drone systems from promoting their solutions to protect airports and domestic infrastructure.
National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby addressed reporters, highlighting policy “gaps and seams” that cannot be addressed without Congressional action. He urged Congress to pass counter-UAS (unmanned aerial systems) legislation, which has been proposed and requested multiple times by the current administration. Such legislation would aim to extend and expand existing counter-drone authorities to identify and counter potential threats.
Government officials have indicated that the recently sighted drones, observed since mid-November, do not pose an immediate threat and are not believed to be part of any organized attack. According to a military official, if intelligence had indicated these aerial objects were foreign or military in nature, a military response involving advanced sensors and weapons could have been initiated. In contrast, the FBI has taken over investigations into these recent incidents, implying a domestic origin for the drones.
On December 16, 2023, Senator Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) called on the Department of Homeland Security to deploy micro-Doppler radar systems in the New York-New Jersey area to detect drones that traditional radar fails to identify. These systems work by measuring minute vibrations produced by drones.
In the backdrop of these discussions, a company named Epirus is offering its directed-energy counter-drone weapon named Leonidas. Leonidas uses high-power microwaves to disrupt a drone’s internal electronics, causing it to fall safely, thus allowing for further investigation. The system reportedly has shown promising results in Army evaluations.
Epirus CEO Andy Lowery expressed readiness to deploy Leonidas to locations such as New Jersey or Virginia’s Langley Air Force Base. However, he noted that it is unlikely for the U.S. government to employ the system domestically soon, due to regulatory constraints from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) relating to frequency usage. The FCC prohibits signal-jamming devices, although the Leonidas is not classified as a jammer.
Despite testing indicating that Leonidas can down drones without interfering with cellular signals or aircraft systems at high altitudes, policy limitations hinder military responses to drone incidents. Pentagon spokesperson Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder confirmed that the military is accelerating the deployment of new drone defense technologies at military bases. These solutions may include active or passive detection capabilities, as well as systems like Drone Busters, which interrupts drone signal operations.
Ryder noted the significant differences in the authorities the military possesses for detecting and tracking drones within the U.S. compared to combat zones. In essence, the intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance capabilities available abroad far exceed those that can be employed domestically.
