DOD’s arsenal of LUCAS drones ‘in the dozens’ amid their combat debut

Less-expensive, one-way attack drones are proving to be a meaningful weapon in U.S. forces’ arsenal as they hustle to overwhelm Iranian defenses in Operation Epic Fury. 

But, according to the Pentagon’s chief technology officer, the joint force’s current inventory of LUCAS (Low-cost Uncrewed Combat Attack System) drones is relatively scarce.

“They were not in full-rate production. So, we shipped what we had. And you saw with some shipments we were able to get out there, [commander of U.S. Central Command Adm. Brad Cooper] talked about great success,” Emil Michael told DefenseScoop on Tuesday. 

“We’re not producing tens of thousands of these. They’re in the dozens, but they work very well so far,” Michael, the former Uber executive who now serves as the Defense Department’s CTO and undersecretary for research and engineering, said during the McAleese Defense Programs conference.

President Donald Trump initiated Epic Fury on Feb. 28 as a U.S.-led, Israel-coordinated military operation to take out Iran’s leadership, ballistic missiles, drone assets, naval power and nuclear infrastructure. 

The U.S. military’s initial wave of strikes in the conflict notably marked the first confirmed deployment of American-made, long-range, one-way attack drones in real-world combat. 

Pulling from Iran’s playbook, the platforms were designed to improve upon the Shahed-136 that Tehran has deployed against Israel and Russia has used against Ukraine. Produced by Arizona-based drone manufacturer SpektreWorks, LUCAS is coming into the spotlight as DOD moves to rapidly field large quantities of inexpensive, unmanned assets through its nascent Drone Dominance Program (DDP).

The LUCAS family of systems is said to cost $55,000 or less per unit, a much lower price tag than many traditional missiles.

LUCAS platforms are modular and have a reported range of 500 miles and a wingspan of 8 feet, as well as autonomy, anti-jamming and swarming capabilities. They can be launched with catapults, rocket-assisted takeoff, and mobile ground and vehicle systems.

Since their introduction into warfare, questions have swirled about the quantity of LUCAS drones that the U.S. has immediate access to. 

The DOD was already ramping up production to create a high-volume arsenal, and senior military leaders previously hinted that there are many more available for future attack surges against Iran. 

While Michael noted LUCAS drones were not being mass-produced before Epic Fury, he said they represent “the future of what [the department is] trying to do” regarding its plans for scaling domestic drone manufacturing at unprecedented levels.

He declined to discuss any Iranian targets that LUCAS drones have been effectively deployed against, but told DefenseScoop that they are “proving out to be a useful tool in the arsenal.”