Pentagon steps up drone purchases for Replicator program

The Pentagon is getting new drones for its ambitious Replicator program, which is designed to field thousands of autonomous systems by August 2025.

The Department of Defense said last week that Anduril’s Ghost-X and Performance Drone Works’ C-100 were selected to help the Army meet its goal in a technology that has transformed the face of warfare in recent years.

Army Gen. Randy A. George, Chief of Staff of the Army, said the conflict in Ukraine has demonstrated the value of small drones on the battlefield.

“The delivery of commercially available Company Level Small UAS with support from the Replicator initiative will allow American soldiers to rapidly experiment, learn and innovate with these systems,” Gen. George said in a statement last week. “The advancement of battlefield technology requires us to innovate faster than ever before.”

Anduril unveiled the Ghost-X in September and called it “the newest and most capable variant of its Ghost autonomous uncrewed aircraft system.” The company also said in September that the Army had selected its newest drones and it would deliver the aircraft later this year to deployed units.

Performance Drone Works’ C-100 is capable of missions lasting up to 74 minutes while carrying a payload, according to PDW’s website.

Ryan Gury, CEO and co-founder of the Hunstville, Alabama-based PDW, said in September that his company was honored to be working with the Army.

“The C-100 system enables a significant transformation of modern maneuver forces,” Mr. Gury said in a statement. “As we enter a new era of small robotics in warfare, PDW is proud to contribute to the American renaissance in defense robotics.”

Deputy Secretary of Defense Kathleen Hicks said last week that the Pentagon’s newest Replicator announcement helped demonstrate it was on track and had reduced barriers to innovation.

“We are creating opportunities for a broad range of traditional and nontraditional defense and technology companies, including system vendors, component manufacturers, and software developers, to deliver critical capabilities that our warfighters need, and we are building the capability to do that again and again,” she said in a statement.