Central ND News

At a Senate Defense Appropriations Committee hearing this week, Senator John Hoeven underscored the potential for the Department of Defense (DoD) to collaborate with North Dakota's unmanned aerial systems (UAS) industry in creating more cost-effective methods to counter adversaries' drone technology usage. Hoeven drew attention to recent drone attacks on Israel and Ukraine, where Iran and Russia employed inexpensive UAS and drone swarms, necessitating significantly pricier countermeasures from the U.S. and its allies.

"Across the world, we're seeing drones being used to threaten the U.S. and its allies," said Hoeven. "While these drones often cost very little to produce and use, the cost of countering them is significant. We need to develop better methods for neutralizing these threats that don't strain our military resources, and North Dakota absolutely has the experience and know-how to assist in these efforts."

The senator extended an invitation to Under Secretary LaPlante and Assistant Secretary Hunter to visit North Dakota, learn about its UAS ecosystem, and foster more partnerships similar to those established at their test site, Grand Sky, GFAFB, and UND.

This week's hearing is part of Hoeven's ongoing efforts to bolster North Dakota's leadership in developing both UAS and counter-UAS capabilities.