The United States must stop underestimating drone warfare

In 2026, we are We will not see terrorist incidents similar to September 11, when hijacked planes struck the World Trade Center, or the Oklahoma City bombing, when trucks loaded with ammonium nitrate flattened federal buildings. Instead, the next terrorist act would begin with the whirring sound of drone rotors rotating at 5,000 rpm, which could be heard just seconds before the swarm reached its target.

In recent years, drones have become an integral part of modern warfare. On the battlefield, we have undoubtedly entered an era Accurate mass In conflict, low-cost drones, supported by widely available commercial technology, open software, and artificial intelligence, are becoming more widely used. Effective weapons. They can be hidden in plain sight and then launched to destroy targets thousands of miles away from active battlefields. In June 2025, for example, they were used before Ukraine will destroy 10% of Russian bombers On the runway as part of Operation Spider Web. In the same month, Israel also launched Secret drone attacks From inside Iran to destroy military and nuclear sites. In April, Houthi rebels used drones and cruise missiles to attack the US ship Harry Truman– Nimitz-class aircraft carrier – in the Red Sea. carrier It swerved badly To avoid being hit, a $56 million F-18 was dropped from its roof.

It is certain that in 2026 we will witness a drone attack in the United States, against civilian or military targets.

As happened with the September 11 attacks, surprise will occur Don’t be surprised. The US military has known the offensive and defensive power of low-cost commercial drones since 2017. That year, the Defense Innovation Unit, the Pentagon’s Silicon Valley office, created the military’s first commercial drone unit, with support from then-Secretary of Defense James Mattis. Named Rogue Squadron, it conducted mock drone battles in parking lots and created the first mass certification program within the military for commercial drones, called Blue drones (unmanned aerial system).

But today, due to bureaucratic inertia and accelerated drone capabilities by foreign adversaries, the United States stands defenseless. Currently, no US military facility can reliably repel a complex drone attack such as Ukraine’s attack on Russian nuclear bombers. Our civilian infrastructure is also less protected.

However, the Ministry of Defense budget for 2025 It has $350 million just for tactical-level unmanned aircraft systems. With this funding, the Department of Defense expects nothing but intervention 4000 UASs, bringing the average cost per system to approximately $100,000. Larger drone factories in Ukraine can produce thousands of First Viewer (FPV) drones per day, at a cost of a few hundred dollars apiece. The Ukrainian army delivers to the battlefield 200 thousand FPV drones per month and plans to expand production to 4,500,000 FPV drones Annually by the end of this year.