Army Deploys Launched Effects to 11 of 12 Divisions, With Griffon Aerospace Leading Delivery

WASHINGTON — Senior Army officials report that the Army has deployed launched effects to every headquarters division except one, with Griffon Aerospace providing the bulk of the systems.

According to Lt. Col. Hunter Gray, product manager for Launched Effects within the Program Acquisition Executive’s Maneuver Air portfolio, the unmanned systems have been delivered to 11 of the 12 headquarters divisions and to every Multi-Domain Task Force. He told reporters on Thursday that this initiative stems from Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s 2025 Drone Dominance directive, which requires the Army to equip each headquarters division and MDTF with launched effects by the close of 2026.

Gray added that the Army intends to begin fielding the remaining division next month. He declined to specify which divisions have already received the systems, and the Army did not respond to inquiries by press time.

Launched effects are unmanned aircraft or payloads launched from crewed aircraft, ground vehicles, or maritime platforms, delivering a range of kinetic and non‑kinetic effects. Depending on range and payload, they can extend a unit’s reach and provide capabilities while keeping personnel out of direct danger.

To achieve its fielding objectives, the Army partnered with established industry firms capable of delivering mission‑ready platforms at scale and leveraged commercial supply chains to meet demand, Gray explained.

“This aligns closely with ongoing acquisition reforms and the directives shaping the robotic and autonomous systems landscape,” he said.

Ski Horrocks, deputy program manager for Unmanned Aerial Systems at PAE Maneuver Air, added on Thursday that, beyond the Army’s recent acquisition reforms, industry has been able to scale launched effects through the Department of Defense’s drone marketplace.

“The marketplace’s true advantage lies in its rapid acquisition authorities and contract vehicles,” he noted. “Because Other Transaction Authorities (OTAs) enable faster contract awards than traditional FAR processes, they have allowed the Army to move quickly in scaling launched effects and other drone platforms to soldiers. OTAs serve as the Army’s preferred contract vehicle for assigning vendors a spot on the marketplace.

Gray observed that while some vendors scale more rapidly than others, dual‑use company Griffon Aerospace has distinguished itself through high demand for its systems and its ability to incorporate soldier feedback, delivering platform updates promptly.

“That is the vendor we have scaled the most, given its priority,” Gray said. “Griffon currently supplies hundreds of systems each month to the Army,” he added.

Gray declined to reveal the total number of launched effects delivered, noting that the majority are long‑range systems supplied by Griffon. Neither Gray nor Griffon President Jordan French disclosed the full portfolio of platforms fielded, though both confirmed that the Army has received systems from Griffon’s broader launched‑effects family, including its Outlaw drone.

“We do not focus on a single platform when acquiring systems,” Gray said.

The Army is also procuring a variety of payload options for its launched effects, rather than concentrating on a single mission set. Gray said these include intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR), electronic warfare, and kinetic effects.

“What’s great about these systems is that we can adjust payloads in near real time to meet user requirements,” he said. “Demand fluctuates based on the operational concept of the unit involved.

These remarks follow statements by Col. Gregory Merkl, the Army’s Drone Dominance lead, who told reporters in September that the service possesses sufficient systems to equip each squad with small, one‑way attack drones. Nevertheless, the systems have not yet reached every squad, and the Army lacks enough trained personnel to operate them, Merkl added.

As part of Hegseth’s Drone Dominance initiative, he mandated that every Army squad be equipped with small, one‑way attack drones by the end of fiscal year 2026. Merkl’s September comments indicate the service has not yet achieved this target, despite possessing adequate inventory.

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