US aims to buy 1 million drones

(CLO) The US Army said it will buy at least 1 million drones in the next two to three years to strengthen its defense capabilities.

US Army Secretary Daniel Driscoll said they are aiming to buy at least 1 million drones in the next two to three years, and in the following years could buy from half a million to millions of units per year.

A US MQ-9 Reaper drone. Photo: US Army

In an interview with Reuters, Mr. Driscoll described this as a large-scale purchase increase for drones, while acknowledging many challenges when the US Army currently only buys about 50,000 drones a year.

Small, cheap drones have become one of the most effective weapons in the Russia-Ukraine war, when traditional fighter jets have difficulty operating due to dense air defenses near the front line.

According to Mr. Driscoll, Ukraine and Russia each produce about 4 million drones each year, while China can make twice that.

He said his priority is to help the United States build the capacity to produce enough drones for any future conflict situation, by boosting domestic production from motors, sensors, batteries to circuit boards.

In 2023, the leadership of the US Department of Defense (now the US Department of War) announced the Replicator initiative, an inter-departmental program to purchase and deploy thousands of autonomous drone systems by August 2025.

Last July, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth signed a memorandum declaring he would “repeal restrictive policies” that have hindered drone production in the United States.

Source: https://congluan.vn/my-dat-muc-tieu-mua-1-trieu-may-bay-khong-nguoi-lai-10317040.html