Leonidas, Epirus Developing Microwave-Based C-UAS Air Defense against Drone Swarms

Epirus, a high-growth technology company, announced today a $66.1 million contract award from the U.S. Army’s Rapid Capabilities and Critical Technologies Office (RCCTO) in support of the Indirect Fire Protection Capability-High-Power Microwave Program. The prototyping contract with the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) solidifies high-power microwave (HPM) as an effective short-range air defense solution against swarming unmanned aerial systems (UAS). As part of the Other Transaction Authority, Epirus is collaborating with the RCCTO to rapidly deliver several prototype systems of Leonidas with options to acquire additional support services.

Epirus’ Leonidas counter-electronics system demonstrated lethality against a broad range of UAS and electronic systems and achieved swarm defeat at multiple U.S. Government-sponsored test events, outperforming six down-selected systems. The latest iteration of Leonidas was introduced by the company in April 2022. The company’s software-defined approach to HPM enables upgradable lethality through simple software-based updates. Leonidas features an open system architecture to facilitate integration with the Joint Force’s existing and future command-and-control networks.

“Time and time again, we’ve seen that current air defense systems are ill-equipped to tackle the threat of autonomous drone swarms. This contract with the RCCTO brings new counter-swarm capability to the UAS fight with our cost-effective, modular and upgradable Leonidas systems,” said Ken Bedingfield, Chief Executive Officer, Epirus. “As the threat environment continues to evolve, so, too, will our capabilities, ensuring the U.S. Army is equipped with effective countermeasures to near-term and over-the-horizon electronic threats for decades to come.” This privately funded research is also funded, in part, by the U.S. Government. To learn more, visit the Epirus website here.