Army seeks next-gen missile that could shoot down small drones for less than $150K a pop
The Army is on the hunt for a new munition that could shoot down small drones and be purchased for less than $150,000 per round.
The Army published a sources-sought notice Tuesday on a government contracting website for the Next Generation Counter-sUAS Missile (NGCM) initiative, which comes as the U.S. military is pursuing a variety of additional tools to address the growing threat posed by small unmanned aerial systems on modern battlefields.
“The principal objectives for this effort are to develop, produce, and sustain a missile capability at extended ranges with rapid launch and reduced time-to-target over existing effectors,” officials wrote in the RFI, noting that the weapon would be intended to target Group 2 and Group 3 UAS. The Pentagon categorizes drones into groups based on their size and capabilities, with Groups 1-3 being on the smaller end of the spectrum.
“The system will be expected to achieve Technology Readiness Level (TRL) 7 following the end of the initial developmental test series that ends in [fourth quarter of fiscal 2027] which supports immediate deployment,” officials wrote.
The notice for the NGCM lists a threshold capability for defeating drones at ranges greater than 16 kilometers at 6-kilometer altitude, and an objective capability of reaching them at 25-plus kilometers at 8-kilometer altitude.
The Army wants a quick-fire interceptor equipped with an all-weather RF seeker that can be launched from a platform less than 5 seconds after operator initiation.
The weapon would need to be compatible with the Coyote missile launcher and other components of the military’s counter-drone architecture, such as the Integrated Battle Command System Maneuver (IBCS-M), officials noted.
Last year, the Army awarded a $5 billion contract to Raytheon for its Coyote missile system and associated technologies. The service also picked Anduril to provide its AI-powered Lattice software platform for the IBCS-M program.
The Army is interested in potentially integrating a next-gen missile into the FS-LIDS and M-LIDS counter-drone capability configurations for fixed-site and mobile defense against small UAS, according to the notice.
Affordability of munitions is a growing concern as the Pentagon seeks cheaper alternatives to firing million-dollar interceptors at inexpensive enemy drones.
The cost for the NGCM should be less than $150,000 per round in a quantity buy of at least 5,000 missiles, according to the RFI.
Industry responses to the notice are due Aug. 20.
