US gets battle ready for drone warfare, fortifies its military bases as threat from Iran-Linked groups escalate

U.S. military bases will soon be reinforced with attack drones as part of the Pentagon’s strategy to counter threats posed by Iran-linked groups in the Middle East, The Telegraph reported.

On Monday, US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin announced the expansion of the Replicator program, which was initially aimed at developing drones for potential operations against China.

Why is US reinstalling attack drones on its bases

This new phase of the program will prioritize the deployment of defensive drones at US installations both at home and abroad.

The announcement follows a series of drone attacks on U.S. bases in the Middle East, including a January incident in Jordan that resulted in the deaths of three American troops. The most recent strike occurred at a base in Deir Ezzor, eastern Syria, though no group has claimed responsibility for that attack yet.

US currently utilizes a variety of defences against the so-called “suicide drones,” which are designed to carry explosives into military compounds. It includes electronic jamming devices and anti-aircraft machine guns. Now attack drones will be a part of this artillery and indicates that the Pentagon expects drone warfare to become increasingly common around its bases in the near future.

In his memo, Austin emphasized that “the next stage of Replicator will tackle the warfighter priority of countering the threat posed by small uncrewed aerial systems to our most critical installations and force concentrations”.

These drones have been validated as “as joint capability gaps” that Replicator 2 can close, Austin stated. The agencies’ approach to countering the small drones that fly at about 180-feet altitude with speeds about 250 miles per hour has been layered – electronic warfare and kinetic effects.

Protecting U.S. troops in the Middle East has become a top priority, particularly following the escalation of conflicts after Hamas’s attack on Israel on October 7. Various Iran-linked groups have targeted U.S. forces in Syria, Iraq, and Jordan, viewing the current geopolitical tensions as an opportunity to push Western military presence out of the region.