Drone Swarms Meet Electric Doom

Military vehicle driving on a rural road — Photo: ANURAKE SINGTO-ON / Shutterstock

The U.S. Marine Corps is moving to fight mass drone attacks with a new microwave weapon that can fry entire swarms at once.

Story Snapshot

The Marine Corps picked defense firm Epirus to deliver a vehicle-mounted Leonidas Expeditionary microwave system to zap hostile drone swarms.
The new weapon, part of the Expeditionary Directed Energy Counter-Swarm program, will help Marines test ways to protect troops from cheap, massed drones.
Military leaders say high-power microwaves can hit many drones at once, unlike traditional missiles or guns that target one at a time.
The push for directed energy reflects a wider trend: Washington spends big to chase new tech while many citizens feel basic needs still go unmet.

Marines turn to microwaves to fight drone swarms

Defense company Epirus announced that the U.S. Marine Corps selected its Leonidas Expeditionary high-power microwave weapon for a counter-swarm drone effort. The system is being delivered under the Pentagon’s Expeditionary Directed Energy Counter-Swarm program, known as ExDECS. Leonidas Expeditionary mounts on a wheeled vehicle and fires powerful microwave energy at drones, aiming to shut down their electronics in the air. The Marine Corps plans to use this first unit mainly for testing and experiments.

Reports describe the new weapon as a kind of “drone zapper” meant to protect Marine units from large numbers of small unmanned aircraft. In recent wars, low-cost drones have shown they can spot targets, drop explosives, and overwhelm defenses. Traditional air defenses, like missiles and guns, struggle when many drones attack at once, because they must shoot them one by one. High-power microwaves promise to cover a wider area and hit many drones simultaneously.

How the Leonidas microwave weapon works and why it matters

Epirus’s Leonidas technology sends out short bursts of electromagnetic energy that overload drone circuits and communication links. Instead of blowing up drones with shrapnel, the system disables them by attacking their electronics. This approach can be cheaper over time because each shot is mainly electrical power, not a costly missile. It also reduces stray debris that could threaten civilians or friendly forces, an important concern as drones appear more often over crowded areas.

The Marine Corps has been exploring several counter-drone tools, from handheld jammers to more advanced sensor networks. Adding high-power microwaves is part of a broader plan to create layered defenses where Marines can choose the right tool for each threat. The ExDECS prototype will let Marines see how well the system works in realistic field conditions, including rough terrain, harsh weather, and complex clutter like trees and buildings. Those tests will shape decisions on any future larger buy of similar systems.

A larger military rush into drone warfare and new tech

The Marine Corps interest in Leonidas Expeditionary fits a wider push to both use drones and stop them. The service is building attack drone units and training more small drone operators, while also calling for stronger defenses against enemy drones. Other branches are testing similar high-power microwave systems. For example, the U.S. Army has tried prototype units that disabled dozens of drones in field trials using microwave energy. Lockheed Martin’s Morfius drone concept also aims to blast enemy drones with high-power microwaves.

This race reflects a simple reality: drones are getting cheaper, smarter, and more common. Potential enemies, including non-state groups, can buy commercial drones online and adapt them for attacks. That creates a battlefield where even small units must assume the sky is never fully safe. High-power microwave defenses aim to restore some safety by giving troops a way to knock out whole clusters of drones at once, even if they come from many directions or fly in loose formations.

What this means for citizens worried about the “deep state”

For many Americans on both the right and the left, big defense buys raise familiar worries. They see billions going to advanced weapons for overseas wars while problems at home, such as rising living costs and failing infrastructure, feel ignored. The ExDECS contract for Leonidas Expeditionary is worth millions, and it is only one piece of a growing drone and counter-drone budget. That feeds a sense that elites inside the Pentagon and defense industry profit while regular people struggle.

"The Marine Corps awarded Epirus $11 million for its high-powered microwave program, including a system the company says can attach to different vehicles to zap down drones swarms on the move..The High-power Microwave Autonomous Vehicle Operation Capability, or HAVOC, is based… pic.twitter.com/26Bi3JKJ2Z

— Air-Power | NatSec Ledger (@NatSecLedger) August 10, 2026

At the same time, the threat the Marines are responding to is real. Cheap drones have changed warfare, and ignoring them would put young service members at greater risk. Many citizens can accept spending on tools that clearly protect troops, yet they still demand honest oversight. They want proof that new weapons work as promised, that contracts are transparent, and that someone is watching for waste and favoritism. Clear public reporting on programs like ExDECS can help rebuild trust that often feels broken.