DoD’s Replicator Drone Concept Builds on Lessons Learned in Ukraine

“Small, smart, cheap, and many”  is the way Deputy Defense Secretary Kathleen Hicks describes the characteristics of the drones that the Pentagon intends to put in the hands of warfighters in 18-24 months as part its Replicator drone initiative.

“Imagine flocks of ADA2 (all-domain, attritable autonomous) systems, flying at all sorts of altitudes, doing a range of missions, building on what we’ve seen in Ukraine,” Hicks said.  The experience of the Ukraine conflict has been instructive, said Hicks. “We’ve seen in Ukraine what low-cost, attritable systems can do.”

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