Drone Wars on the Homefront

The Next Civilian Threat

From smuggled cartel drones to DIY protest tactics, the skies above U.S. cities may become the next vulnerability.

Drones, once a battlefield novelty, are now everyone’s concern.

Criminal gangs, extremist groups, and lone-wolf actors are experimenting with unmanned aerial systems in ways that could threaten everyday Americans.

This Mission Access briefing lays out why cheap drones in Ukraine and Gaza foretell challenges for U.S. security, what officials and dark-web chatter are revealing, which targets are most at risk, and how we can prepare.

It concludes with a “Red Team” perspective on how adversaries might exploit drones not just to attack, but to disrupt our society.

Strategic Context: Lessons from Ukraine and Gaza

Modern war zones are proving just how dangerous low-cost drones can be. In Ukraine, defenders have turned off-the-shelf drones into weapons and spies.

In one audacious operation, Ukraine smuggled drones into Russia and launched them from shipping containers to blow up military aircraft, a strike that shocked Moscow (NPR).

American analysts took note when a defense expert warned that because the U.S. is an open society with sprawling infrastructure, “we are even more vulnerable” to such drone infiltrations.