Military Downs Drone in Texas

The downing of the Customs and Border Protection drone occurred near Fort Hancock, Texas, after the military employed a high-energy laser weapon system. A preliminary internal report indicated that CBP may not have notified the Department of Defense about the drone's flight plan, leading the military to perceive it as an unknown and potentially hostile aircraft. The incident prompted the Federal Aviation Administration to close the airspace in the area for "special security reasons," a restriction set to last until June 24. The weapon used was the AeroVironment LOCUST, a 20-kilowatt laser system designed to counter unmanned aircraft. This system is mobile, can be mounted on vehicles like the Infantry Squad Vehicle or Joint Light Tactical Vehicle, and uses electro-optical and infrared cameras for tracking targets. The LOCUST is part of a broader military push to field directed-energy weapons to defend against the growing threat of small drones. This was the second time in a matter of weeks that anti-drone technology had caused airspace closures in the El Paso region. In an earlier event, the FAA shut down the El Paso airport after an anti-drone laser was used, which reportedly targeted what turned out to be a party balloon. That incident also raised questions about inter-agency coordination. The drone involved was a Predator B, an unmanned aircraft that costs approximately $17 million to purchase. The operational cost for each flight hour is estimated to be around $12,255. These drones are a key part of CBP's surveillance strategy along the U.S.-Mexico border. In response to the friendly fire incident, Democratic Representatives Rick Larsen, Bennie Thompson, and André Carson issued a sharp rebuke, stating, "Our heads are exploding over the news." They attributed the event to a "lack of coordination" and criticized the White House for sidestepping a bipartisan bill aimed at improving training and communication protocols for counter-drone operations. The legislation referenced by the lawmakers is the Counter-UAS Authority Security, Safety, and Reauthorization Act. This bill was designed to establish clear standards for training and improve coordination between the Pentagon, the Department of Homeland Security, and the FAA to prevent such incidents. However, its provisions were reportedly bypassed in favor of different counter-drone policy updates included in the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2026. This event occurs as the use of drones by cartels for surveillance and illicit cross-border activities is on the rise. U.S. Northern Command has reported detecting thousands of drone flights along the border each month, prompting the deployment of military counter-drone systems to the region. While this incident did not result in casualties, it is not the first instance of a U.S. drone being involved in a friendly fire event. In 2011, a Predator drone strike in Afghanistan killed two American service members, a Marine and a Navy medic, after they were mistaken for insurgents.