Ukraine’s drone war is coming to American factories
Modern wars are won by those who can turn battlefield lessons into mass-produced technology faster than their adversaries.
Drones Unleashed
The Department of Defense, seeing the tactics of warfare being redefined in Russia's war against Ukraine, understands the U.S. must evolve, strengthen and advance the American drone industrial base to keep up with the changing threats. The Threat Status team takes a deeper look at what the defense industry is doing to meet the demand to keep our soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines equipped with the latest technology.
Kyiv pushes back on Iran’s victim claim after Ukrainian drone strike on Caspian Sea ship
Kyiv is dismissing threats of retaliation from Iran after Ukraine launched a drone strike over the weekend at an Iranian-flagged cargo ship in the Caspian Sea.
Ukraine fires 400 drones toward Moscow as Zelenskyy grapples with protests
Ukraine fired more than 400 drones toward Moscow in its latest major attack on the Russian capital, the city’s mayor said Monday.
Austin-based sea drone maker to build massive port in Texas
A futuristic transformation of American shipbuilding is accelerating, with autonomous surface vessel producer Saronic Technologies announcing plans to construct a multibillion-dollar new shipbuilding port in Brownsville, Texas.
EU sanctions Russian companies in response to deadly drone attacks on Ukraine
The European Union on Friday imposed sanctions on a Russian corporate executive and five companies that produce drones being used in Moscow’s war against neighboring Ukraine.
On The Ground: Inside NATO’s eastern flank as Russia’s shadow war intensifies
Along NATO’s eastern flank, from Finland to Poland, allied nations are bracing for what officials call Russia’s “next phase” — a hybrid war of drones, cyberattacks, and sabotage that rarely makes headlines but never stops. Washington Times reporter John T. Seward traveled the border to see it firsthand.
LISTEN: Understanding how modern drones actually work
Ira Hughes, senior director of sales for Doodle Labs, joins the show to talk about drones, connectivity, secure data links, and whether the Pentagon’s drone dominance initiative is moving too fast.
Ukrainian drones batter Russian oil facilities and set more oil tankers ablaze
Ukrainian drones on Thursday hit more Russian oil facilities and set two oil tankers ablaze in the Sea of Azov, a day after U.S. President Donald Trump pledged to grant Ukraine a license to manufacture the Patriot air defense systems.
Ukraine targets eight Russian ‘shadow fleet’ tankers in drone attack
Ukrainian long-range drones struck eight oil tankers in the Sea of Azov that Kyiv said were part of the Kremlin’s “shadow fleet” of sanctioned vessels sent to deliver fuel to the Russia-controlled Crimean Peninsula.
Russia’s missile and drone attacks on Ukraine kill at least 20
Russia unleashed waves of missiles and drones at Ukraine early Monday, killing at least 20 people in attacks that exposed widening gaps in the country’s air defenses more than four years into Moscow’s full-scale invasion, authorities said.
Ankara markets drones, air defense to states looking to reduce reliance on U.S. weapons
Ankara will use its turn hosting this week’s NATO summit to market its own drones and air-defense systems, turning a meeting about how much allies spend on defense into a showcase for Turkey’s weapons industry.
Pentagon moves to consolidate drone programs under single office
The Pentagon is moving nearly every unmanned and autonomous systems program into a new office, in a bid to catch up in a global production race the U.S. is currently losing by volume.
A major Russian attack kills at least 18 in Kyiv as Ukraine keeps striking Moscow’s oil sector
Russia hammered Kyiv in an 11-hour drone and missile attack overnight into Thursday morning, killing at least 18 civilians in the city and injuring scores more in what Moscow said was retaliation for Ukrainian strikes on Russian oil facilities.
Zelenskyy says Ukraine hits a Russian oil refinery for the second time in a week
Ukrainian forces struck Russia’s major Ufa oil refinery for the second time in a week, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Wednesday.
China turns Russia’s drone war into a warning for U.S.
Watching the war in Ukraine, it feels as if drones have rewritten warfare.
Britain sets out a plan for future defense with a focus on drones and a fight over money
Self-flying fighter jets, uncrewed submarines and drones will be at the center of Britain’s future military under a defense plan being announced Tuesday that reflects a world of conflicts transformed by technology.
‘Like a small airport’: Feds nab biggest prison drone-smuggling operation in history
The idea of delivering packages by drone is relatively new and exciting for Americans at large. For prison officials, however, it has long been a reality — and a dangerous one at that.
Ukraine’s Black Sea ports fight to stay open as Russian drones target wartime lifeline
At the start of the invasion in February 2022, Russia’s Black Sea fleet appeared to hold a near stranglehold over Ukraine’s coast. That changed two months later, when Ukrainian anti-ship missiles sank the Moskva, the fleet’s flagship, near Snake Island.
‘The time is now’: Key Pentagon official says Navy needs more drone boats in its fleet
The U.S. Navy and its defense industry partners are moving beyond the prototyping phase and toward production of cutting-edge drone boats, a key Pentagon official said this week, with expected increases in defense budgets set to help fund a revolution in unmanned maritime technology.
South Korean military makes massive pivot to drones
South Korea’s Defense Ministry announced Friday that it would train 500,000 “drone warriors” in a major shift into the asset class that is dominating warfare in Ukraine.
Ukraine unleashes one of its heaviest drone bombardments of Russia
Russian air defenses intercepted 660 Ukrainian drones in a major nighttime attack on 12 Russian regions as well as the Russia-held Crimean peninsula, the Black Sea and the Azov Sea, Russia’s Defense Ministry said Friday.
300 drones seized for flying around World Cup sites across U.S.
The Transportation Security Administration said that as of Tuesday, law enforcement had seized over 300 drones illegally flying around World Cup sites.
Report: Russia using air defense assets from the front line to protect Moscow from Ukrainian drones
Russia appears to be strengthening its air defenses around Moscow at the expense of the front lines in its war against Ukraine, according to an analysis by the Institute for the Study of War think tank.
Mexican national charged with flying drone over FIFA Fan Festival in Atlanta
A Mexican national who authorities say is unlawfully present in the United States faces federal charges after allegedly flying a drone over Centennial Olympic Park during the FIFA Fan Festival in Atlanta, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia.
Foiled plot targeting UFC event at White House meant to set off revolution by killing Trump
A plot to unleash explosive drones and sniper fire at the UFC Freedom 250 event at the White House was meant to “jump-start” a revolution by killing President Trump and other top political figures, federal prosecutors said Tuesday.
FBI foils plot targeting White House UFC Freedom 250 event
The FBI said five people have been arrested in connection with a plot to target Sunday’s UFC Freedom 250 event at the White House with explosive-laden drones.
Drone strikes kill over 1,000 people in Sudan in the first 5 months of 2026, U.N. rights chief says
Drone strikes killed more than 1,000 civilians in war-torn Sudan in the first five months of 2026, a senior United Nations official said Monday as the unmanned aerial vehicles turn the conflict deadlier for civilians.
U.S. losing Reaper drones in the Mideast without any clear plan to replace them
The U.S. Air Force has lost nearly one-third of the available fleet of critical Reaper drones in Middle East conflicts since the start of the Trump administration, including more than two dozen in the Iran war.
Senate’s $1.15 trillion defense bill urges Pentagon to create new combatant command for drones
The Pentagon should create a new combatant command focused exclusively on drones and robotics, lawmakers said in a major defense bill that cleared a key Senate committee Thursday.
In America’s race to build drones, we’ve forgotten drone operators
The Pentagon plans to field hundreds of thousands of attack drones starting this year.
We must move now for safer American skies
A sobering 2025 report by “60 Minutes” exposed America’s lack of preparedness to drone incursions around critical defense sites such as Langley Air Force Base in Virginia.
Ukraine is ready to share drone technology with Nordic and Baltic countries, Zelenskyy says
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy met with Nordic and Baltic leaders who were in Estonia for a regional summit Tuesday, a visit that comes amid friction over Ukrainian drones straying into the region in recent months.
Swarmer’s Wall Street debut points to new era in U.S.-Ukraine defense ties
When Swarmer, a U.S.-based drone company with roots in Ukraine, listed on the Nasdaq this spring, the move drew attention well beyond the small circle of investors willing to bet on another defense technology startup.
From the skies to the streets, feds are bracing for World Cup threats across 11 U.S. cities
Rogue drones, lone wolf actors and human trafficking rings top the list of concerns of public safety officials overseeing the multilayered security apparatus for the upcoming FIFA World Cup matches in the United States.
AI in a box: The race to give warfighters real-time intelligence
Defense and National Security Correspondent John T. Seward spoke with Dan Wright of Armada and Tyler Sweatt of Second Front Systems about the race to bring secure, AI-powered computing to the front lines, and why distributing that capability around the globe may be one of the most important defense investments America can make.
Capitalizing on wartime expertise: Ukraine weighs formation, export of for-profit military companies
Ukraine is considering a step that would have seemed politically radioactive before the war: legalizing private military companies to turn the country’s unmatched experience of modern warfare into an export business.
Vast sums of private capital fueling the U.S. military’s drone drive
A “golden age of private capital” is driving the development and production of the small unmanned systems key to the Pentagon’s Drone Dominance Initiative, a top Defense Department official told a major military conference Wednesday.
UAE says air defense blasted six drones over the past two days
The United Arab Emirates said Tuesday that its air defense detected and destroyed six hostile drones over the past 48 hours.
Can high-tech superpowers be fought to a standstill - on the cheap?
The latest trends in weapons technology are showing that low-tech, easy-to-obtain, disposable arms can confound even military superpowers.
Ukraine’s drone war gives Kyiv new hope as Russian assaults bog down
While Russia still holds the initiative in several sectors and continues to pour men, drones and artillery shells into the fight, Ukrainian soldiers say Moscow’s assaults are increasingly being disrupted or destroyed before they can reach their positions.
Ukraine says battlefield ‘stabilizing,’ Kyiv destroying most Russian drones
Ukraine has emerged from what officials have said was its most challenging winter of the war with a stabilized front line and an air defense capable of knocking down the vast majority of incoming Russian drones, Kyiv’s top diplomat said Monday in Brussels.
UAE actively intercepting Iranian missiles as tensions continue in Strait of Hormuz
The United Arab Emirates said Friday its air defense systems were actively intercepting Iranian ballistic missiles and drones, one day after the U.S. and Iranian forces traded fire in the Strait of Hormuz.
Russia says Ukraine launched a major drone attack after Moscow shunned ceasefire offer
Russian air defenses shot down 347 Ukrainian drones overnight, Russia’s Defense Ministry said Thursday, in what appeared to be a major attack after Moscow spurned Kyiv’s ceasefire earlier in the week and tension mounted over safety at Russia’s upcoming Victory Day celebrations.
WATCH: The secret oil deals and drone strikes reshaping the Russia-Ukraine war
As the Middle East crisis chokes global oil supply, Russia is cashing in — raking in a record $9.7 billion a month in energy revenues. Foreign correspondent Joseph Hammond explains how Ukraine is fighting back.
