U.S. Army Deploys Ukraine-Tested Drones to Counter Iranian UAV Threat
The U.S. Army is deploying low-cost interceptor drones, known as Merops, to counter Iranian-made Shahed drones. These drones were initially tested in Ukraine and are part of a strategy to address the economic imbalance in air defense, which has traditionally favored adversaries using inexpensive, disposable technology. Army Secretary Dan Driscoll announced during a budget hearing that the Army has already begun deploying these systems and is rapidly increasing production. The Merops drones, developed by U.S. defense firm Perennial Autonomy, are designed to destroy hostile drones in flight and are equipped with a two-kilogram fragmentation warhead. They can operate in contested environments and resist GPS and radio-frequency jamming. The system was first used by Ukrainian forces in 2024 and has since been adopted by NATO allies like Poland and Romania. 
