Pentagon puts all military drones under one new office in US drone dominance push
The Pentagon is consolidating oversight of every military drone and autonomous system under a single new office reporting to the Deputy Secretary of War. Days earlier the War Department asked industry whether it could build roughly 300,000 drones quickly and cheaply. Both moves f
On July 1 the Pentagon announced it is consolidating oversight of all military drones and autonomous systems under a single new office, the Direct Reporting Portfolio Manager for Unmanned Systems, reporting straight to Deputy Secretary of War Stephen Feinberg. It pulls together funding, acquisition and policy previously scattered across the individual services, the Defense Innovation Unit and several separate task forces. Days earlier the War Department issued a request to industry to gauge whether it could build roughly 300,000 drones quickly and inexpensively. Both moves trace back to a June executive order and a follow-up memorandum from Secretary of War Pete Hegseth built around what officials call drone dominance. A Pentagon spokesman said adversaries already produce millions of unmanned systems every year, with a plan for tens of thousands of small drones reaching US forces this year and hundreds of thousands more by 2027. Spreading drone programs across many offices slowed decisions and duplicated work, so putting one manager in charge is an attempt to buy speed. The harder problem is industrial: a country can write a requirement for 300,000 drones far faster than its factories can deliver them.