In brief
Emil Michael, the Defense Department’s Under‑Secretary for Research and Engineering, said the U.S. was caught off‑guard by Ukraine and Russian drone warfare. The Pentagon is now developing autonomous drones and claims a stockpile of about 500,000, while U.S. drone companies face supply‑chain and cost hurdles. Acting director Travis Metz noted the Department is starting from "basically zero" in cheap expendable drone production.
New York – A senior Pentagon official told reporters the United States was caught flat‑footed by Ukraine’s drone warfare and had not imagined the speed of modern aerial combat. According to TASS, the statement came from Emil Michael, the Defense Department’s under secretary for research and engineering.
"We were caught flat‑footed by the drone warfare in Ukraine and Russia. We weren’t prepared because we just didn’t imagine it," Michael said, as quoted in the Wall Street Journal. The comment highlights how quickly Ukraine deployed drones in recent conflicts.
In response, the Pentagon says it is now working to equip the Army with autonomous drones that could dominate in future conflicts across Europe and the Middle East. Michael added that the U.S. has a stockpile of about 500,000 drones and that it produced roughly 1,000 drones under former President Joe Biden.
Despite the focus on autonomous systems, the U.S. military still relies heavily on intelligence reports and satellite imagery to identify targets, Michael said. The department is also exploring artificial‑intelligence–driven approaches to improve target selection.
Travis Metz, acting director of the Pentagon’s Defense Innovation Unit, told Bloomberg that the department is "starting from basically zero" in manufacturing cheap expendable drones. He explained that U.S. drone companies face supply‑chain challenges and high component costs.
These developments illustrate how the U.S. is modernizing its air capabilities after realizing the gaps exposed by drone warfare in Ukraine and Russia. The Pentagon’s new strategy focuses on building a large autonomous drone inventory while addressing production hurdles.
