While I’m all about the positive uses of drones in emergency management, there must be counter-programs addressing the nefarious aspects of the technology.
See below for a new Department of Homeland Security (DHS) contract that is a sweet deal for the winning company.
News Release: DHS S&T Awards $259M to Counter-Unmanned Aircraft System Threats
Release Date: April 19, 2022
WASHINGTON – The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) awarded $259,831,989.00 to the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) Defense Technical Information Center (DTIC) to assist in the acquisition of technical services, in support of S&T’s Counter-Unmanned System Threats (C-UST) efforts. Amentum Services, Inc., of Germantown, MD, was selected as the prime contractor, through DoD’s Fair Opportunity Proposal Request competitive process.
"S&T's C-UST effort focuses on identifying, developing, demonstrating, and assessing technologies and concepts to meet the operational priorities of DHS Components and other federal, state and local partners,” said Kathryn Coulter Mitchell, Senior Official Performing the Duties of the Under Secretary for S&T. “They can then use this knowledge to acquire technologies that enhance their capabilities in protecting critical infrastructure and the American public.”
Under this contract, Amentum will perform complex research and development activities to fight off new threats from unmanned systems. The work involves researching, developing, and testing capabilities related to cyber vulnerabilities of Countering-Unmanned Aircraft Systems (C-UAS) technologies; radio frequency spectrum measurements to enable safe integration of C-UAS equipment into the national airspace; integrating, testing and evaluating new and emerging C-UAS and UAS technologies across various environments and terrains within the homeland; supporting the integration and deployment of prototype C-UAS systems across DHS C-UAS mission areas to obtain operational feedback; and enabling rapid operational transition to DHS Components performing C-UAS authorized missions.
Learn more about S&T’s C-UAS portfolio.
