U.S. Air Force officials at Langley Air Force Base in Virginia are looking at installing anti-drone nets to help protect F-22 Raptor stealth fighters on the flightline. This comes nearly a year after the base was subjected to waves of still-mysterious drone incursions, which The War Zone was first to report. It also underscores the U.S. military’s continued lag when it comes to responding to the very real threats posed by uncrewed aerial systems, at home and aboard, and particular hurdles to doing so domestically.
Langley’s 633rd Contracting Squadron put out a notice on October 4 asking for information about potential counter-drone netting that could be installed around up to 42 existing open-ended sunshade-type shelters at the base. Langley, now technically part of Joint Base Langley-Eustis, is one of a select few bases to host F-22s and is a key component of the Air Force’s posture to defend the U.S. homeland.
The 633rd “is in the process of determining the acquisition strategy to obtain non-personal services for the Unmanned Ariel Services (UAS) Netting for East Ramp Metal Sunshades,” according to the contracting notice. “The intention of the netting is to deter and ultimately prevent the intrusion of UAS’s near airmen and aircraft. This initial sunshade netting installation on the metal sunshade (bay Alpha 1) shall serve as a proof of concept for the remaining sunshades.”
The “netting should be capable of disabling a Group 1/ “Small” Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS), such as the DJI Matrice 300 RTK, while remaining attached,” the notice explains. Per the U.S. military’s definitions, drones in Group 1 can have weights of up to 20 pounds, fly up to 1,200 feet, and reach speeds of up to 100 knots.
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