U.S. Army Conducts Live Counter-Drone Combat Training With Full Air Defense Stack.

U.S. Army air defense soldiers from the 6th Battalion, 56th Air Defense Artillery Regiment conducted a live drone flight demonstration at Fort Hood, Texas, on Jan. 29, 2026, observed by senior leaders from III Armored Corps and 1st Cavalry Division Artillery. The event underscores the Army’s push to integrate layered counter-drone capabilities as unmanned aerial threats become more common on modern battlefields.

U.S. Army air defense units showcased a full-spectrum counter-drone training sequence during a live flight demonstration led by the 6th Battalion, 56th Air Defense Artillery Regiment on Jan. 29, according to a Department of Defense report. The event brought together air defense crews and civilian personnel under the observation of leaders from III Armored Corps and the 1st Cavalry Division Artillery, focusing on detecting, classifying, and neutralizing representative unmanned aerial threats in a realistic tactical environment.
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M-LIDS on an M1277 M-ATV with M153 CROWS, M240B and LOTUS jammer, Delta Battery, 6-56 ADA, 1st Cavalry Division Artillery. (Picture source: US DoD)

Recent operational feedback has made one point clear. Drones are no longer marginal assets limited to observation, but tools for targeting, saturation, and attrition that are reshaping ground combat dynamics. In this environment, short-range air defense units are assigned an expanded role, positioned between traditional air defense and close protection of command posts, artillery elements, and logistics convoys. The presence of senior leaders during the Fort Hood event reflects this shift: counter-UAS is no longer treated only as a technical specialty, but as a maneuver-relevant function and therefore a command-level concern.

Moreover, the demonstration fits within a broader US Army effort to improve protection for armored and mechanized formations facing a growing UAV (Unmanned Aerial Vehicle) threat. The 6-56 ADA now sits at the center of short-range air defense modernization, employing layered architectures to counter drone profiles that are increasing in number and evolving across operational theaters. Fort Hood provides a suitable setting to test tactics and technology together, encouraging interaction between combat units and civilian developers to maximize the value of these trials.

Within this framework, the unit fields a coherent set of sensors and effectors built around the Mobile-Low, Slow, small unmanned aircraft Integrated Defeat System (M-LIDS). In the configuration observed, the system is based on the M1277 Mine Resistant Ambush Protected All-Terrain Vehicle (M-ATV) and an M153 Common Remotely Operated Weapon Station (CROWS), providing a mobile platform intended to move with maneuver elements while enabling rapid responses to low-altitude threats. The package also includes the Ku-band Radio Frequency Sensor (KuRFS), a Ku-band radar used to improve detection, tracking, and classification of small, low-signature targets. For kinetic engagements, crews employ the Coyote interceptor, presented as a dedicated solution to defeat UAVs in flight.

At close range, the defense layer is reinforced with direct-fire weapons, including an XM914 30 mm cannon and systems such as the M240B machine gun, to address drones that penetrate outer layers. The architecture also incorporates electronic warfare capabilities, including the LOTUS jammer, intended to disrupt command or transmission links and provide a non-kinetic option when the tactical situation allows. In parallel, the demonstration also features the AN/MPQ-64 Sentinel radar deployed on an M1078 Light Medium Tactical Vehicle (LMTV), underscoring the value of mobile air surveillance close to engaged units.

However, the value of a “live flight demonstration” goes beyond presenting equipment. Direct exposure of systems to real signatures remains essential, since the behavior of a small drone in a complex environment is difficult to model: fluctuating altitude, irregular trajectories, variable speed, and a cluttered background. The 6-56 ADA crews use the event to run their full detection-to-engagement process, assess radar tracking performance, refine classification procedures, and improve decision tempo. In this type of engagement, the window for action is short, and misidentification can have immediate tactical consequences.

In addition, the event involves the 1st Cavalry Division Artillery, highlighting growing links between counter-drone defense and the fires enterprise. Spc. Noel Stoehr, a fire support specialist, participates by operating one of the one-way attack drones used during the demonstration. He notes the difficulty of keeping the target centered with an unstabilized camera during the terminal phase, illustrating that these systems, sometimes described as simple, still rely on operator skill and flight profiles that complicate defensive action. More broadly, drone integration into fire support changes observation conditions, reduces exposure for forward teams, and accelerates the targeting cycle. For air defense units, this means an opponent may field both a sensor and an effector in the same airspace volume at relatively low cost.

Finally, the Fort Hood exercise reflects a wider trend that extends beyond the US context. The spread of reconnaissance drones and one-way attack systems is reshaping the cost-effect balance on the battlefield and enabling actors to adapt quickly using commercial components. For Western militaries, the implication is immediate: protecting ground forces increasingly requires low-altitude air defense integrated at every level, from tactical groupings to corps formations. By publicly demonstrating layered capabilities, the US Army also sends a signal of credibility to allies and adversaries in a strategic environment where control of the low-altitude air domain is becoming a marker of operational advantage and an element of conventional deterrence.