AMP-HEL Directed-Energy System Downs Three Cartel-Linked Drones on the US Southern Border

Main Story

In the early hours of 26 August 2026, US military personnel assigned to Joint Task Force – Southern Border (JTF-SB) used a high-energy laser weapon to engage and defeat three unmanned aircraft systems in the Rio Grande Valley region of southern Texas. The operation, which spanned the late-night hours of 25 and 26 August, was confirmed in a joint statement by the North American Aerospace Defense Command and US Northern Command.

The three UAS were classified as hostile on the basis of their direct support of activities assessed to pose a physical threat to US military personnel and their Customs and Border Protection (CBP) partners. JTF-SB commanders said the drones were being used by cartel networks to conduct surveillance of US and law enforcement operations — a pattern the task force described as a growing and systematic challenge. As Maj. Gen. Curtis Taylor, commander of JTF-SB, noted in the official statement, cartel networks are increasingly deploying UAS for human-smuggling facilitation and active intelligence-gathering against US personnel.

The weapon system identified in the engagement is the Army Multipurpose High Energy Laser, or AMP-HEL. While the military did not officially name the system's manufacturer in connection with this specific operation, AeroVironment (NASDAQ: AVAV) had publicly confirmed delivery of the first two AMP-HEL prototype systems to the US Army's Rapid Capabilities and Critical Technologies Office (RCCTO) in August 2025, with a second increment following in December 2025. The AMP-HEL is the operational designation for the prototyping effort that integrates AeroVironment's LOCUST laser weapon system onto mobile tactical vehicles.

This engagement is notable in the context of earlier, more turbulent deployments of directed-energy counter-UAS systems along the southern border. In February 2026, a laser-based counter-UAS system was used near El Paso under circumstances that generated interagency friction, including an incident in which a CBP drone was accidentally engaged after the agency failed to coordinate its flight with JTF-SB. A subsequent joint test involving the FAA, the Pentagon, and partner agencies at White Sands Missile Range in March 2026 was convened specifically to validate safety, performance, and airspace coordination protocols for the AMP-HEL system before broader deployment. The August 2026 operation appears to represent the outcome of that corrective process — a controlled, coordinated, and intentional operational employment against confirmed threat UAS.

JTF-SB has operated under US Northern Command since assuming its mission in March 2025. It currently deploys approximately 8,000 service members across roughly 1,954 miles of border terrain, supporting CBP with detection patrols, observation flights, and infrastructure reinforcement. The scale of the cartel drone threat is significant: earlier Army assessments cited by reporting suggest that as many as 1,000 cartel-linked UAS may cross the border monthly on missions ranging from surveillance to contraband movement.

Technical Breakdown

System: Army Multipurpose High Energy Laser (AMP-HEL)

Developer / Manufacturer: AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ: AVAV), Arlington, Virginia; directed-energy manufacturing in Albuquerque, New Mexico

Laser weapon core: AeroVironment LOCUST™ (Laser weapon system) — a 20 kW-class directed-energy weapon designed for counter-UAS missions

Platform variants delivered:

• Increment 1 (delivered August 2025): LOCUST LWS integrated on the General Motors Defense Infantry Squad Vehicle (ISV) — a lightweight, highly mobile platform optimised for frontline deployment
• Increment 2 (delivered December 2025): LOCUST LWS mounted on the Oshkosh Joint Light Tactical Vehicle (JLTV), featuring a larger-aperture beam director for improved lethality performance

Acceptance and training pipeline: Prototypes underwent government acceptance testing at Yuma Proving Ground, Arizona, validating performance, mobility, safety, and lethality. Army units subsequently completed new equipment training at Fort Sill, Oklahoma.

C-UAS operating principle: The system uses concentrated laser energy to disable or destroy small unmanned aircraft. It is intended to provide a cost-effective engagement option that does not expend conventional munitions or missiles — a significant operational and logistical advantage given the high volume of low-cost threat UAS.

Autonomy / AI integration: AeroVironment describes the LOCUST system as incorporating AI-enabled precision tracking and targeting. The LOCUST Laser Weapon System is documented as utilising artificial intelligence to intercept UAVs.

Target UAS class: Small, cartel-operated unmanned aircraft assessed to be engaged in intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) activity; precise UAS type and manufacturer not publicly disclosed by the military.

Engagement location: Rio Grande Valley, southern Texas (precise coordinates not released by the military).

Industry Impact

For directed-energy manufacturers: The AMP-HEL's first publicly confirmed operational kill of hostile UAS in a domestic law-enforcement support role is a significant proof-of-concept milestone for AeroVironment and for the broader directed-energy counter-UAS sector. The program has now moved from acceptance testing and training through to live operational engagement — a transition that will strengthen the case for further procurement and higher production rates. AeroVironment has already signalled readiness for full-scale LOCUST manufacturing across AMP-HEL and other platform configurations.

For counter-UAS integrators and regulators: The February–March 2026 incidents near El Paso underscored that deploying high-energy laser weapons in shared civil-military airspace requires rigorous inter-agency coordination frameworks. The FAA's formal involvement in the March 2026 White Sands validation test — and the FAA Administrator's subsequent safety risk assessment — establish a procedural template that integrators and operators will need to replicate in future deployments. For regulatory bodies, this event accelerates the need for standardised airspace deconfliction protocols specific to directed-energy C-UAS systems.

For the C-UAS market: The operational employment of a vehicle-mounted high-energy laser in a homeland security context — rather than a declared combat theatre — marks a meaningful expansion of the acceptable use envelope for directed-energy C-UAS. It signals to procurement offices and allied militaries that mobile, vehicle-mounted laser systems are operationally mature enough for domestic law enforcement support missions, not only forward combat deployment.

For CBP and law enforcement operators: The scale of the drone threat along the southern border — with Army estimates of up to 1,000 cartel-linked UAS crossings per month — creates a persistent demand signal for scalable, cost-effective counter-UAS solutions. The AMP-HEL's low per-shot cost relative to kinetic interceptors is operationally relevant at that volume. Future integration of directed-energy systems into CBP's own C-UAS portfolio, potentially under a transfer or joint-use model similar to early 2026 arrangements, is a logical evolution that industry and programme offices will likely accelerate.