The Low-cost Uncrewed (Unmanned) Combat Attack System (LUCAS) is a family of one-way attack drone s, also known as loitering munitions, developed for the United States military. Sponsored primarily by the United States Marine Corps with integration support from the United States Army, LUCAS represents a shift toward affordable, mass-producible unmanned aerial systems (UAS) designed for high-volume deployment in modern warfare.The system draws inspiration from the Iranian-designed HESA Shahed 136 loitering munition, which the U.S. reverse-engineered following the capture of damaged examples in combat zones.LUCAS is similar in appearance to the Shahed 136. At about 10 feet long and with a wingspan of about eight feet, it is smaller than the Iranian Shahed. The Shahed 136 is priced at less than $50,000, and the cost of LUCAS has not yet been disclosed.[1][2][3][4][5][6] LUCAS incorporates American technological enhancements, including enhanced autonomy, swarming capabilities, and flexible launch mechanisms, while maintaining a low unit cost to enable saturation tactics against peer adversaries.Introduced publicly in mid-2025, LUCAS has been positioned as a counter to low-cost drone swarms used by adversaries such as Iran and its proxies, as well as Russia in the ongoing conflict in Ukraine. By December 2025, the U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) had established the first operational squadron of LUCAS drones in the Middle East under Task Force Scorpion Strike (TFSS), marking a significant escalation in U.S. drone warfare doctrine. The program's emphasis on rapid production and multi-vendor manufacturing echoes historical industrial mobilizations, such as the World War IILiberty Ship program, aiming to produce thousands of units at scale.[7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15]
The genesis of LUCAS traces back to the U.S. military's response to the proliferation of inexpensive loitering munitions in asymmetric and peer conflicts. Iran's Shahed-136, first unveiled in the early 2010s and deployed extensively by Russian forces against Ukraine since 2022, demonstrated the effectiveness of low-cost, one-way drones in overwhelming air defenses through sheer numbers. These munitions, priced at approximately $20,000–$50,000 each, have been used to target infrastructure, military assets, and civilian areas, prompting Western militaries to seek cost-effective countermeasures. U.S. interest in reverse-engineering the Shahed intensified after capturing damaged specimens during operations against Iranian-backed militias in Iraq and Syria around 2021–2023. Analysis revealed that Shahed drones incorporated significant Western components, including U.S.-made GPS modules and microchips, which facilitated disassembly and adaptation. In 2024, under directives from the Pentagon's Replicator initiative—a program to field thousands of attritable autonomous systems by August 2025—the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) accelerated development of domestic equivalents.
The primary contractor, SpektreWorks, an Arizona-based firm specializing in unmanned systems, led the engineering effort. Founded in 2018, SpektreWorks had previously developed the FLM-136, a Shahed-inspired target drone for training and threat emulation. LUCAS evolved from this platform, with initial prototypes unveiled at a Pentagon briefing in July 2025.[16][17] The Marine Corps assumed sponsorship, viewing LUCAS as integral to its Force Design 2030 modernization, which prioritizes distributed maritime operations with layered UAS. The U.S. Army contributed through its Long-Range Precision Fires (LRPF) program, integrating LUCAS into combined arms maneuvers for penetrating anti-access/area-denial (A2/AD) environments.
Development milestones included:
Early 2025: Reverse-engineering completed; initial flight tests at SpektreWorks' Phoenix facility.
July 2025: Public reveal of modular LUCAS variants, emphasizing "authentic threat emulation" for adversary training.
November 2025: Formation of TFSS, with first squadron activation.
The program's modular design allows for rapid iteration, with warhead integration deferred to enable early operational testing. Col. Nicholas Law, Director of Experimentation in the Office of the Under Secretary of War for Research & Engineering, emphasized the scalability: "There is a price point that we want to produce a lot of these in a rapid fashion. It’s not a single manufacturer: it’s designed to go to multiple manufacturers to be built in mass quantities."
By late 2025, LUCAS had transitioned from prototype to production, with contracts awarded to at least three vendors for initial lots of 500 units each.
Design and technical specifications
LUCAS adopts a delta-wing configuration reminiscent of the Shahed-136, optimized for simplicity, low observability, and ease of mass production. The airframe measures approximately 10 feet (3 meters) in length with an 8-foot (2.4-meter) wingspan, constructed from lightweight composites to minimize radar cross-section and production costs. Unlike the pusher-propeller Shahed, LUCAS variants incorporate electric propulsion for quieter operation and reduced thermal signature, though some models retain piston engines for extended range.
Key specifications include:
Weight: 150–200 kg (330–440 lbs), including payload.
Payload Capacity: Up to 50 kg for inert or explosive warheads (under development; current tests use non-lethal simulants).
Range: 1,000–2,000 km, depending on configuration, enabling deep-strike capabilities from forward bases.
Endurance: 4–6 hours loiter time, sufficient for persistent surveillance and precision strikes.
Speed: Cruise at 150–185 km/h (93–115 mph); terminal dive up to 300 km/h.
Guidance: GPS/INS primary, with optional satellite datalinks for beyond-line-of-sight control and anti-jamming resilience.
Launch Weight: Compatible with man-portable or vehicle-mounted systems.
The design prioritizes modularity: Warheads can be swapped for mission-specific loads, such as high-explosive, fragmentation, or electronic warfare payloads. Launch options include rail-mounted catapults, rocket-assisted takeoffs from trucks, or palletized drops from C-130 aircraft, enhancing tactical flexibility in contested environments.
SpektreWorks engineered LUCAS for "broad performance capabilities," including foldable wings for compact storage and 3D-printable components to accelerate manufacturing. This contrasts with high-end U.S. drones like the MQ-9 Reaper, which costs $30 million per unit and requires extensive logistics.
Capabilities and features
LUCAS's operational edge lies in its blend of affordability and advanced autonomy, addressing vulnerabilities exposed by Shahed swarms. Core features include:
Autonomy and AI Integration: Onboard processors enable waypoint navigation, target recognition via electro-optical/infrared sensors, and man-in-the-loop overrides. Automated target acquisition uses machine learning algorithms trained on real-world data, reducing operator workload in swarm scenarios.
Swarming and Mesh Networking: Up to 100 units can form ad-hoc networks for coordinated attacks, sharing sensor data and dynamically reassigning targets. This "mesh-network swarming" allows LUCAS to overwhelm defenses through distributed lethality, a capability absent in baseline Shahed designs.
Survivability Enhancements: Low-altitude flight profiles (50–500 meters) evade radar, while electronic countermeasures counter jamming. The one-way nature permits high-risk missions without recovery concerns.
Multi-Domain Integration: Compatible with joint all-domain command and control (JADC2) systems, LUCAS feeds real-time intelligence to manned platforms like F-35 jets or ground artillery.
In testing, LUCAS demonstrated precision strikes within 5 meters CEP (circular error probable) against simulated armored vehicles. CENTCOM officials noted: "LUCAS drones deployed by Centcom have an extensive range and are designed to operate autonomously. They can be launched with different mechanisms to include catapults, rocket-assisted takeoff, and mobile ground and vehicle systems."
These features position LUCAS as a "bullet-like" munition, treatable as expendable ammunition rather than a recoverable asset, aligning with DoD's 2025 drone dominance strategy to acquire over 200,000 UAS by 2027.
Testing and evaluation
Testing of LUCAS commenced in spring 2025 at the U.S. Army Yuma Proving Ground (YPG) in Arizona, selected for its 2,000-square-mile restricted airspace, arid climate, and dedicated UAS infrastructure. YPG's 500+ radio frequencies and non-competitive environment with manned aviation enabled "baby steps" in progressive evaluations, starting with inert payloads to assess aerodynamics and autonomy. Procedures involved:
Phase 1 (Q2 2025): Ground launches and short-range flights to validate propulsion and guidance.
Phase 2 (Q3 2025): Loiter-and-strike simulations against mock targets, incorporating swarming with surrogate drones.
Phase 3 (Q4 2025): Safety certification with pyrotechnic simulants, preparing for live warhead integration.
Col. Law highlighted YPG's versatility: "The facility itself gives us the flexibility to do what we need... It really comes down to the flexibility of the airspace: If the system is weaponized, I have the ability to test that here." Over 200 sorties were logged by December 2025, with a 98% success rate in terminal guidance.
Additional evaluations occurred at Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center Twentynine Palms, focusing on expeditionary launches from amphibious vehicles. No major failures were reported, though challenges in warhead miniaturization persist.
Deployment and operational use
On November 23, 2025, CENTCOM activated the first LUCAS squadron under TFSS, deploying approximately 50 drones to undisclosed bases in the Middle East. This unit, comprising Special Operations Command Central personnel, integrates with REJTF for rapid tasking across CENTCOM's area of responsibility, from the Levant to the Arabian Gulf.
The deployment serves dual purposes: deterrence against Iranian drone exports and proxy attacks, and operational support for counterterrorism. Adm. Brad Cooper, CENTCOM commander, stated: "This new task force sets the conditions for using innovation as a deterrent. Equipping our warfighters faster with cutting-edge drone capabilities showcases U.S. military innovation and strength, which deters bad actors."
As of December 10, 2025, LUCAS has not seen combat, but exercises simulated strikes on Houthi positions in Yemen. The squadron's structure includes 24-aircraft flights with mobile launchers, enabling 72-hour surge capacity. Integration with existing forces, such as MQ-9 units, enhances layered effects in multi-domain operations.
LUCAS embodies a doctrinal pivot toward "attritable" systems, where quantity trumps quality to counter A2/AD threats from China, Russia, and Iran. Priced at $35,000 per unit—comparable to Shahed—the program allows the U.S. to match adversaries' attrition strategies without fiscal strain. Analysts note this "dose of its own medicine" for Iran, which has long reverse-engineered U.S. technology, from RQ-170 drones to TOW missiles.
Geopolitically, deployment signals resolve amid escalating tensions, including Iranian-backed attacks on U.S. assets. It also bolsters allies like Ukraine and Israel, with potential exports under Foreign Military Sales. Critics argue proliferation risks, as LUCAS's simplicity could enable non-state actors if compromised. However, DoD safeguards include encrypted firmware and export controls.
In broader terms, LUCAS accelerates the "drone arms race," prompting investments in counter-UAS technologies like directed-energy weapons.
Future prospects
Looking ahead, LUCAS production is slated to ramp to 10,000 units annually by 2027, with variants for naval and air-launched roles. Warhead finalization is expected in Q1 2026, followed by live-fire certifications. The Army plans squad-level integration by fiscal 2026, equipping every maneuver unit with organic launchers.
SpektreWorks envisions expansions like hypersonic boosters for extended range. International interest from NATO partners could lead to co-production, though export versions omit swarming tech. Challenges include supply chain vulnerabilities for electronics, but multi-vendor sourcing mitigates risks.
Col. Law's optimism underscores the program's potential: "The capacity and capabilities available here are very impressive." As drone warfare evolves, LUCAS stands as a cornerstone of U.S. adaptation to 21st-century threats.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
