Defense UAS as we reach the end of the year has several stories that illustrate divergent thinking in the how drones will be used and deployed in the future. Drone warfare is warfare by industrial capacity, which includes both the ability to mass produce low-cost effective systems as seen in the Russia-Ukraine conflict, where Russian production increasingly grinds down Ukraine’s defenses. Iran, which is some ways pioneered this approach of low-cost high volume saturation drone attacks continues to innovate with a low-observable one-way attack UAV the Hadid-110 intended for the suppression of enemy air defenses (SEAD) role.
The US has deployed its first “attritable mass” unit to the Central Command (CENTCOM) area of operations, though the US lacks the industrial alignment that make these types of systems effective. US high-end aerospace dominance can be seen in Northrop Grumman’s reveal of Project Talon, a rapidly deployed autonomous fighter aircraft designed to act as a collaborative wingman.
Key Points:
- The US Department of Defense is executing a foundational shift in procurement strategy, prioritizing speed and affordability to generate “attritable mass” demonstrated last week in the reveal of Task Force Scorpion Strike (TFSS), established by U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM), has formed the U.S. military’s first one-way-attack drone squadron using the Low-Cost Uncrewed Combat Attack System (LUCAS), which costs between $10,000 and $55,000 per unit.
- Russia’s new state-backed drone system, Rubikon, has centralized various volunteer groups and is rapidly eroding Ukraine’s early edge in drone warfare. Rubikon specializes in hunting Ukrainian drone units and targeting logistics and network infrastructure, like Starlink terminals. • Iran’s IRGC Ground Force has fielded the new
- Hadid-110 suicide UAV, which utilizes jet propulsion and partial stealth features to reduce its radar cross-section and minimize the enemy’s window for engagement.
- Northrop Grumman unveiled Project Talon, an autonomous aircraft designed to serve as a collaborative, adaptive wingman for manned fighters. Project Talon was designed and built remarkably fast, on track to fly in under 24 months.
Task Force Scorpion Strike (TFSS) Pioneers US Attritable Mass
The Department of Defense (DoD) is actively departing from its traditional, multi-year weapons development cycles, signaling a shift toward rapid prototyping and fielding of unmanned systems. This strategic pivot prioritizes speed, volume, and affordability to produce “attritable mass“. Attritable mass is defined as a large quantity of effective, expendable assets that can be deployed without the catastrophic strategic or financial loss associated with a single high-value system. The development of new drone concepts has been compressed dramatically, moving from initial drawings to functional prototypes in just 18 months, a significant change from the previous five-to-six-year standard.
A core example of this strategy is the Low-Cost Uncrewed Combat Attack System (LUCAS) program, which is sponsored by the Marine Corps. LUCAS is designed as an affordable, mass-producible, and expendable asset, with a unit cost ranging from $10,000 to $55,000 depending on the variant. This cost-centric acquisition model establishes a fixed price point from the start, forcing a focus on efficiency and essential capabilities. U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) established Task Force Scorpion Strike (TFSS) to accelerate the delivery of these new systems.
In a short period, TFSS has already formed the U.S. military’s first one-way-attack drone squadron, which is composed of LUCAS drones and currently based in the Middle East. CENTCOM commander Adm. Brad Cooper noted that equipping US deployed forces faster with cutting-edge drone capabilities showcases U.S. military innovation, which is inline with the National Security Strategy released last week.
Russia’s Rubikon System Centralizes Drone War Efforts
An unfortunate realization is dawning on the front lines in Ukraine: the country has, in effect, lost its hard-fought advantage in Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) warfare against Russia. Russia has centralized what began as a patchwork of volunteer drone groups into a state-backed system that focuses on training pilots, ramping up production, and hunting Ukrainian drone operators. This centralized effort is crystallized in Rubikon, the public centerpiece of Russia’s front-line drone strategy.
Rubikon specializes in locating and neutralizing Ukrainian drone units, including shooting their UAVs out of the sky. A major success for Rubikon has been clipping the wings of heavy bomber drones nicknamed “Baba Yagas,” which had previously allowed Ukrainian units aerial dominance during nocturnal operations. The rise of Rubikon is reflected in its rapid scaling of published strike footage: from 31 strikes in January, the figure rose to 1,016 in June, and then 2,246 in November 2025.
Perhaps more impressively, Rubikon units have achieved precision sufficient to hit Ukrainian network infrastructure, including Starlink terminals and patch antennae, which is a brutally effective form of encirclement in network-dependent fighting. The professionalization of these units is “very dangerous”, culminating in the recent emergence of Russia’s Unmanned Systems Forces. Ukraine’s lack of industrial capacity, and lack of capacity from NATO backers, to meet this challenge will continue to place considerable pressure on Kyiv in 2026.
Hadid-110: IRGC Unveils Jet-Powered Stealth Penetrator
The IRGC Ground Force has fielded the new “Hadid-110” drone, known internally as “Dalahu,” which has been developed as a jet-powered OWA UAV with a stealth-oriented platform. The most important distinction between the Hadid-110 and previous generations of Iranian OWA drones is the use of a jet engine, which helps overcome the fundamental weakness of propeller-driven UAVs: limited speed and long time of flight against modern air defense systems. The jet engine significantly reduces the time needed to reach a target, limiting the window for detection, tracking, and engagement. Russian Geran drones have been seen with jet engines as well in recent months, though video evidence suggests they are still vulnerable to well-timed interception.
The airframe incorporates faceted angles and purposeful geometry designed to reduce the drone’s radar cross-section. This combination of partial stealth and high speed means the Hadid-110 is designed to be detected only at a distance insufficient for effective engagement. Furthermore, the drone uses a rocket-assisted launch method, allowing operational units to deploy it from various geographical locations without requiring a runway or complex launch pad. This improves survivability against attacks against command and control assets much as the Shahed-101/107 models have demonstrated during the 12 Day War.
The Hadid-110 is designed specifically for penetrating air defense layers to destroy sensitive targets, such as radars, command centers, or critical infrastructure, playing the role of a “path-opener” for other offensive assets and would expected to be seen in opening phases of any renewed hostilities between Iran and Israel.
Northrop Grumman Unveils ‘Project Talon’ Autonomous Wingman
Northrop Grumman unveiled Project Talon on December 4, 2025, an autonomous aircraft built to fly alongside manned fighters. Project Talon is positioned as a disruptive solution in air dominance, acting as an adaptive, collaborative teammate that expands previous boundaries of collaborative aircraft technology. It is intended to be a force multiplier, enhancing lethality, adaptability, and mission effectiveness for U.S. and international customers in dynamic threat environments. Manned-Unmanned Teaming and autonomous wingman programs represent significant departures from the low-cost mass produced systems seen in recent conflicts. Aerospace “primes” as well as new entrants to this segment continue to demonstrate new systems, often on accelerated design timelines compared to manned programs.
The development timeline for Project Talon was highly accelerated as an example; the aircraft was designed, built, and is on track to fly in under 24 months. Northrop Grumman achieved this speed and simplicity by utilizing advanced modular manufacturing techniques and leveraging its autonomous testbed ecosystem, Beacon, to accelerate the testing of avionics software in real-world environments. Project Talon builds on the company’s seven decades of experience in autonomy, where it holds more than 500,000 autonomous flight test hours across a range of UAS programs.
