DARPA is seeking technology to shoot down small tactical UAVs.
The agency’s request for information, titled “Mobile Force Protection,” calls for mobile and layered defenses against small unmanned aerial systems (sUAS). The technology should be capable of being fielded within the next three to four years.
“The solution should be scalable and modular such that it could be deployed in multiple defense applications on a variety of platforms (vehicles and vessels); the solution is intended for the defense of fixed and mobile ground and naval forces,” DARPA said. “To the greatest extent possible, it should also address rocket, artillery, mortar, and other conventional threats. System flexibility, deployability, and affordability will be major design drivers, as the system will only be an effective deterrent and defensive capability if it can be widely deployed to protect a large number of assets.”
