Drones are used for everything from recreation to security at stadiums, but they can also pose a serious national security threat, especially when flown near military installations or critical infrastructure.
Rear Adm. Paul C. Spedero Jr. of the U.S. Navy testified during a recent House Oversight hearing that the United States is not prepared to defend against drone threats.
“The homeland is no longer a sanctuary,” Spedero said. “Should our adversary choose to employ drones for surveillance or even attack, we would not be prepared to adequately defend our homeland and only marginally capable to defend our military installations.”
Tom Karako, director of the Missile Defense Project and a senior fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, described the growing challenge posed by aerial surveillance and drone attacks.
“It fundamentally is what can be targeted, what can be surveilled, what can be jammed, or what can be hit with some kind of munition,” Karako said. “Unfortunately, we'd have to be very choosy in terms of what things we were actually going to defend.”
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When asked whether U.S. facilities are vulnerable now, Karako didn’t hesitate.
“They are, simply as a matter of fact,” he said. “About once a year, we have an especially outsized attention to air defense, to drones and aircraft. It's called the Super Bowl. At that point, nobody flies anywhere near it.”
He added, “Somewhere between defending one spot ... very heavily for one day and defending everything — somewhere in between there — is probably where we need to go.”
Scripps News visited a counter-drone technology demonstration outside Washington, D.C., where a variety of systems were on display. These technologies are being used to protect high-value targets from drone threats.
“The menu of dealing with especially the cheaper unhardened drone threats is actually a pretty full menu,” Karako said. “Everything from bullets and missiles to high-powered microwaves, lasers, and jamming devices.”
One company showcasing non-kinetic counter-drone technology is D-Fend Solutions, an Israeli firm founded by former Israeli Defense Forces members. Their system can take control of a drone.
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"The pilot is thinking I went too far and the transmission has gone bad or the drone crashed and all he's seeing is the last image that the camera was filming," said Themis Tzamarias, senior manager of pre-sales engineering at D-Fend.
D-Fend Solutions has already deployed its technology internationally, including in Slovakia during a visit by Pope Francis. In the U.S., both the Department of Defense and the Department of Homeland Security are clients.
Jeffrey Starr, D-Fend’s chief marketing officer, said staying ahead of evolving drone threats is a constant challenge.
“New drone technologies come into play and the counter-drone must keep up with it,” he said. “That's exactly how this whole defense tech has transformed dramatically.”
He added that the federal government appears to be investing more in drone defense.
Earlier this year, a top Pentagon official testified that in 2024 alone, there were more than 350 drone sightings near 100 military installations across the United States.
