Army seeks tech to dominate drone-filled ‘Air-Ground Littoral’ domain
The US Army’s Futures Command has issued a broad call to industry for technologies that can enhance operations in the “Air-Ground Littoral”—the drone-saturated zone spanning from the ground up to a few thousand feet. The request seeks solutions across eight focus areas, including unmanned mine-clearing systems, drone swarms, and sensor-to-shooter tools for improved targeting and firepower. To be considered, technologies must be ready for experimentation with the 4th Infantry Division at Fort Carson, Colorado, by next year, and must be compatible with the Next Generation Command and Control (NGC2) system currently in development. The initiative, which encourages participation from both traditional and non-traditional defense contractors, reflects the Army’s push to rapidly prototype and adopt unmanned and counter-unmanned systems, spurred by lessons from the war in Ukraine and directives for wider use of small drones across units. The solicitation coincides with Technet Augusta, a major military-industry tech forum where systems like NGC2 are central topics.