AUTOWAR25 Afternoon Edition
Two drones were shot down near Baghdad's Green Zone on Tuesday as the U.S. Embassy's air defenses activated, a day after Russia struck Kyiv with ballistic missiles and 280 attack drones. The Air Force Research Laboratory flew its XQ-67A autonomous collaborative platform with new mission systems over Nevada, and DIU picked Fort Benning and Fort Hood for on-base driverless-vehicle pilots in its ROADS challenge. Marines' first live-warhead Neros Archer strikes in Japan, Saudi intercepts of Houthi drones and a Skydio-and-electronic-warfare rotation in Germany round out the top stories.
1. Two drones are shot down near Baghdad's Green Zone as the U.S. Embassy's air defenses activate, Iraqi officials say
Iraq's Security Media Cell says a loud blast heard across Baghdad on Tuesday afternoon came from the interception of a drone near the fortified Green Zone, and Iraqi security sources tell Reuters the U.S. Embassy's air defenses detected two drones approaching the perimeter and shot them down.
- Security Media Cell head Lt. Gen. Saad Maan tells Kurdistan24 the drone carried no explosives, calling it "a failed attempt" rather than an attack, with no casualties or damage.
- Debris was recovered at two locations, and a technical team is investigating where the drones were launched.
- Security sources tell The New Arab the embassy's C-RAM system brought down two surveillance drones; officials did not confirm which system was used.
- No group has claimed responsibility; the embassy has faced repeated rocket and drone attacks by Iran-backed militias since the Iran war began in February.
2. Russia hits Kyiv with ballistic missiles and 280 attack drones overnight, striking a university campus, the Southern Bridge and medical facilities
Ukraine's Air Force says Russia launched Iskander-M/S-400 ballistic missiles and 280 Shahed, Gerbera and decoy drones from 6 p.m. Oct. 26, with Kyiv the main target, and that 255 drones and two missiles were shot down or jammed by 9 a.m., the Kyiv Independent and Ukrinform report.
- 69 of the Shahed-type drones were jet-powered; 56 of those were downed, the Air Force says.
- Hits were recorded at 25 locations and debris fell at 16; several drones were still in the air at the time of the report.
- At least one person was killed and 15 injured in Kyiv, including a paramedic and a university student, the State Emergency Service says.
- President Zelensky says Russia fired 16 ballistic missiles and calls the strike on the Southern Bridge "a serious escalation" against Ukraine's logistics.
3. AFRL and Air Combat Command fly the XQ-67A autonomous collaborative platform with new mission systems and beyond-line-of-sight links over Nevada
In "Air Force Research Laboratory completes flight of XQ-67A, advancing autonomous technology" (AFRL, Oct. 27), the lab says it and ACC's Experimental Operations Unit flew the XQ-67A in the Nevada Test and Training Range under the Demon APE project.
- The flight integrated new sensors, mission computers and power and thermal management hardware.
- Beyond-line-of-sight datalinks and live, virtual and constructive simulation showed management of uncrewed platforms across distributed theaters, AFRL says.
- "By pairing AFRL's rapid prototyping with ACC's operational test units, the Air Force is shortening the timeline between concept and warfighter capability," says Col. Matthew Caspers.
- The General Atomics-built XQ-67A is a testbed feeding the Air Force's Collaborative Combat Aircraft effort.
4. DIU picks Fort Benning and Fort Hood for on-base driverless-vehicle pilots and advances five teams to Phase III of its $30 million ROADS challenge
The Defense Innovation Unit said Oct. 27 that Fort Benning and Fort Hood will host the next phase of the Robotic Operations for Autonomous Delivery and Sustainment (ROADS) prize challenge, which brings commercial driverless-car technology to the department's non-tactical vehicle fleet.
- Advancing to Phase III: Forterra with May Mobility, Applied Intuition, Perrone Robotics, Overland AI with Gatik, and Bot Auto, DIU says.
- Phase III is a 3–4+ month on-installation pilot with small fleets, with up to $10 million available to selected companies, according to the solicitation.
- DIU says ROADS will set the operational, safety and installation processes to move commercial autonomy "toward repeatable deployment" across the department.
- The $30 million challenge, run with the Army, targets a fleet of more than 150,000 non-tactical vehicles.
Sources: @DIU_x post · diu.mil (ROADS launch)5. U.S. Marines fly live-warhead Neros Archer one-way attack drones into targets at Camp Fuji, Japan, for the first time
In "Marines Test Neros Archer at CATC Camp Fuji for First Time" (DVIDS), Battalion Landing Team 1/1 of the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit flies the first-person-view strike drone in its live kinetic variant on Oct. 20 at the foot of Mount Fuji.
- Both flights, including an anti-armor ambush scenario, destroyed their targets with no unexploded drones left on the range, Defence Blog reports from the release.
- "Neros Archer is the current Marine Corps' program of record for one-way attack drones flown by a first-person view pilot," says Camp Fuji Gunner CWO2 Stephen Bilbo.
- The pilots were junior Marines trained in a three-week course, per the battalion.
- It follows the Marines' first live-fire FPV training in South Korea in July and August, with strikes out to about 20 km.
6. Saudi air defenses shoot down four Houthi drones and three ballistic missiles aimed at the kingdom, the Saudi-led coalition says
In statements carried by the Saudi Press Agency on Tuesday, coalition spokesman Maj. Gen. Turki al-Maliki says four drones launched toward the Southern Region and three missiles aimed at the Eastern Province were intercepted, with no casualties.
- Saudi Civil Defense issued alerts around 3 a.m. local time for the Eastern Province and Al-Kharj before giving the all-clear.
- The coalition also reported downing three drones over Riyadh and the southern region on Monday evening, Al Jazeera reports.
- A Houthi attack on Riyadh's King Khalid International Airport this month killed at least 13 people.
- There was no immediate Houthi comment.
7. 1st Armored Division soldiers fold a Skydio X10 drone and a VMAX electronic warfare system into Combined Resolve 27-01 training at Hohenfels
U.S. Army Europe and Africa posted Oct. 27: "During Combined Resolve 27-01 at Hohenfels, Soldiers from 1st Armored Division integrated a Skydio X10 unmanned aircraft system and VMAX electronic warfare system into training scenarios."
- The post, headed "Eyes up. Signals on.," shows soldiers with the small drone and electronic warfare gear in the field.
- Combined Resolve is the multinational rotation run by the 7th Army Training Command in Germany.
- The Army has not released details on how the systems were used in the scenarios.
Sources: @USArmyEURAF post8. Sudan's RSF hits five power stations with drones in a coordinated pre-dawn attack, blacking out four army-held states, the state electricity company says
In a statement Monday, the Sudan Electricity Holding Company says Rapid Support Forces drones struck the Singa, El Hawata, Al Fao, Mashkour and Al-Junaid stations, causing "severe damage" and a total blackout of the southeastern grid, Reuters and AFP report.
- Power was cut in Sennar, Gedaref, White Nile and Gezira states, about half the territory the army holds, and the operator says the national grid's stability is threatened.
- AFP's correspondent in Al-Jazira says power had been out since 2 a.m.; the RSF did not respond to requests for comment.
- Sudan Tribune reports a guard was injured at Singa and the RSF also tried to hit fuel depots at Um Alila.
- Both sides have stepped up drone strikes this month, including attacks on RSF-held Nyala and army-held Khartoum airport, Reuters says.
9. SOUTHCOM's commander says autonomous systems are "not just for testing anymore" and wants a river-reconnaissance mix of drone boats, aircraft and underwater vehicles for the counter-drug fight
In "EXCLUSIVE: SOUTHCOM chief seeks unmanned river solution as he embraces autonomy" (Breaking Defense, Oct. 26), Gen. Francis Donovan says he wants a "tailorable mix of unmanned surface, air and sub surface autonomous platforms" to map how criminal networks use South and Central American rivers.
- Saronic Corsair drone boats moved to Guantanamo Bay are now deployed on both sides of the Panama Canal, assisting local forces and canal security, Donovan says.
- SOUTHCOM's Autonomous Warfare Command (SAWC) runs a training and test site at Naval Station Guantanamo Bay that is open to allies, agencies and industry: "We are open for business."
- Autonomous systems "will be used to take the fight to the enemy," he says.
- The interview took place Oct. 13.
Sources: Breaking Defense10. The Navy and Marine Corps demo a Maven Smart System air-defense dashboard that puts incoming threats and available defenses on one screen
In "Navy, Marine Corps demonstrate prototype air-defense decision tool at WTI" (Department of the Navy release), the Maven Smart System Regional Air Defense Commander Dashboard C2 Tool is shown Oct. 5 at Weapons and Tactics Instructor course 1-27 at MCAS Yuma.
- The Navy's Overmatch Rapid Capability Cell built the prototype inside the existing Palantir-built Maven environment in under two months, Defence Blog reports.
- Project Dynamis and Task Force Maven led the Marine side, with the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing as sponsor.
- "Ready-to-use C2 tools are critical," says 3rd MAW assistant wing commander Brig. Gen. Dolberry Jr.
11. The Pentagon's technology office warns that "any narco terrorist drone" entering U.S. airspace "will be completely DESTROYED"
The Department of War's chief technology office (OUSW(R&E)) posted Oct. 27: "Any narco terrorist drone that attempts to invade American skies will be completely DESTROYED. DEFEND THE HOMELAND."
- The post drew more than 750 likes within hours and was reposted by Patrick Weaver, deputy chief of staff to the Secretary of War.
- The office did not name a program, unit or incident tied to the warning.
- Secretary Hegseth the same day reposted SOUTHCOM's meeting of defense leaders from 19 Western Hemisphere nations in the Dominican Republic.
Sources: @DoWCTO post12. Iran's army says it shot down a U.S. LUCAS one-way attack drone over Bandar Abbas and circulates debris photos; CENTCOM hasn't addressed the claim
In "Iranian army says it shot down US drone over Bandar Abbas, Tasnim reports" (Reuters, Oct. 25), Iran's army says its unified air defense network destroyed a U.S. LUCAS drone over the southern port near the Strait of Hormuz.
- The claim comes from Iran's army via the semi-official Tasnim news agency (claim, not independently verified).
- Photos of what Iranian outlets say is the wreckage, including propellers and engine parts laid out on tarps, circulated widely on X on Sunday.
- CENTCOM commander Adm. Brad Cooper flew over the Strait of Hormuz on Oct. 25; CENTCOM's account of the visit doesn't mention the drone claim.
- LUCAS is the low-cost U.S. one-way attack drone the Army is training units to employ.
13. DIU and the Navy's DRPM RAS open SWAP-USV Sprint 2, a prize challenge for drone boats armed with hard-kill counter-air weapons, with proposals due Nov. 30
In "We are scaling distributed maritime air defense" (Oct. 23), the Navy's Direct Reporting Program Manager for Robotic and Autonomous Systems says it has launched SWAP Sprint 2 with DIU and DRPM UxS, and DIU's solicitation seeks production-ready USVs paired with mature counter-air effectors that can be fielded forward within 120 days.
- Four weapon tracks: Hellfire/JAGM, APKWS rockets, remote weapon stations with Stinger, machine guns or high-power lasers, and other mature effectors.
- Thresholds: 200 nautical miles of range, a 10-knot cruise and engagements beyond 3 nautical miles against Group 1–3 drones and helicopters, under human-in-the-loop control.
- Up to $40 million in prizes for Sprint 2, with $200 million budgeted for follow-on prototype or production deals; in-water testing is planned for early 2027 at Little Creek, Va.
- DIU posted updated FAQs on Oct. 26, including how to obtain the Category 1 technical data package; The Defense Post also covered the sprint.
14. AUKUS partners run more than 40 crewed, uncrewed and autonomous systems off Southern California in Maritime Big Play Pacific, "from seafloor to space"
In "U.S., Australia, U.K. Launch Maritime Demonstration to Enhance Interoperability" (war.gov, Oct. 22), the Pentagon says the demonstration runs Oct. 5–26 and is testing how the three nations jointly operate uncrewed maritime systems and share maritime data in real time.
- Assistant Secretary of War for Critical Technologies Michael Dodd: "It's certainly all autonomous systems ... in the domains from seafloor to space."
- Dodd says the goal is to "deter major conflicts by creating a disparity of technological capability."
- Maritime Big Play was the first project under AUKUS Pillar 2's new model and led to its first signature project, announced in May: payloads and enabling systems for uncrewed undersea vehicles.
- Saronic says it fielded three Corsair drone boats across the three nations, including a pier resupply run with communications partly denied, Defence Blog reports Oct. 27.
15. Owen West says Drone Dominance "will soon expand in domain and size" as DIU lines up orders for 60,000 small attack drones from nine companies
Owen West (DoW), personal X account, wrote Oct. 24: "The U.S. invented drones. Yet our military failed to cheapen and scale for troops doing the fighting and dying. Drone Dominance will soon expand in domain and size."
- West: FPVs "were a fitting start to ensure grunts have an option beyond close contact and an endless air permission queue."
- DIU's Gauntlet II leaderboard sets up 30,000 drones in Deep Strike and 30,000 in Close Quarters Battle, per Defence Blog.
- Neros placed in both categories and says it is "delivering 14,000 drones and explosive payloads."
- West did not say which domains come next or when.
16. A massive drone attack on Voronezh kills two men, the governor says, and likely hits a petrochemical plant, an Ilyushin aircraft factory and a bridge
In "Drone attack on Russia's Voronezh region kills two men, governor says" (Reuters, Oct. 26), Voronezh Governor Alexander Gusev reports deaths and fires at several industrial sites in the city after an overnight drone attack.
- Militarnyi reports the Voronezhsintezkauchuk synthetic-rubber plant, which OSINT Varta links to defense supply chains, was likely hit.
- Local monitors say the Voronezh Aircraft Manufacturing Company, part of Ilyushin, was also likely struck; it builds the Il-96-400M and parts for other aircraft.
- The Northern Bridge across the Voronezh Reservoir was reportedly struck and closed to traffic.
- ASTRA footage appears to show a drone exploding at the 25-story Chizhov Gallery business center; the Kyiv Independent couldn't verify the extent of damage.
17. Project Agincourt marks the 611th anniversary of the battle it's named for, pledging to "rapidly adapt, field, and scale unmanned capabilities across the joint force"
Project Agincourt's official account posted Oct. 25: "611 years later, @SecWar's Project Agincourt is fusing operators with innovators to rapidly adapt, field, and scale unmanned capabilities across the joint force—transforming how we fight and win."
- The post marks Henry V's 1415 victory at Agincourt, where "the longbow changed warfare."
- It follows Secretary Hegseth's one-word "AUTOWARCOM" post on Oct. 24, quoting Owen West's summary of the plan for an Autonomous Warfare Command.
- The Oct. 21 war.gov release says the model measures success by how fast an operational problem gets a fielded, scalable solution.
- The roadmap letter was signed by Owen West and Senior Chief Max Strasiser.
18. Ukraine says Starlink and Starshield are back to full speed for its drones; Elon Musk says Ukraine broke Starlink's terms with drone strikes, and Kyiv says that was impossible
President Zelensky said Oct. 24 that "the speeds are now where they need to be," and Ukraine's Defense Ministry said Starshield was again working above 400 km/h, the Kyiv Independent reports, ending more than a week of limits that disrupted front-line drone work.
- Musk on X: Ukraine's "military violated Starlink terms of service and used it for offensive drone strikes to kill people. That loophole was closed last week."
- Zelensky adviser Serhii Beskrestnov: since February, terminals in Ukraine stop working above 70–90 km/h and Starlink is off over Russia, so "we physically cannot use commercial Starlink for deep strikes," Defence Blog reports.
- Moving terminals must be registered and routed through Starshield, which Musk says "is controlled by the US government."
- ISW says Ukrainian officials confirmed unrestricted access on Oct. 24. This follows Sen. Blumenthal's probe into the restrictions, with answers due from the Pentagon by Nov. 5.
19. MacDill Air Force Base trains with JIATF-401 on two drone interceptors: the net-firing Paladin and the ramming Bumblebee V2
In "A new sting in drone defense: Bumblebee V2 arrives at MacDill" (6th Air Refueling Wing Public Affairs, Oct. 23), the base shows 6th Security Forces Squadron defenders training Oct. 8 with Joint Interagency Task Force 401 on counter-drone interceptors.
- Paladin, a six-rotor drone from Zone 5 Technologies, fires net rounds that tangle a target's rotors, avoiding bullets or fragments over the base, Defence Blog reports.
- The Bumblebee V2 brings down hostile drones by direct collision and is described as a low-cost option for layered base defense.
- The Air Force hasn't said how many systems took part, whether live intercepts happened or whether it will buy Paladin.
- MacDill hosts CENTCOM and SOCOM headquarters.
20. The Army picks AWS and World Wide Technology for a $2.6 million Project Griffin pilot to build autonomous, agentic cyber defense
In "U.S. Army launches Project Griffin to automate cyber defense" (Defence Blog, Oct. 27), the Army says it chose the two companies Oct. 23 to build a platform that can find and stop network threats with little human involvement.
- Griffin is one of three fast-tracked efforts under Project ARDS (Army Rapid Defensive of Cyber Systems).
- "We will swiftly implement SI-enabled cyber tools to detect, divert and deceive threat actors," says Brandon Pugh, principal cyber advisor to the Army secretary.
- Project Manager, Cyber Warfare runs the pilot; the Army didn't say how the money is split or how long the pilot lasts.
Sources: Defence Blog · @Defence_blog post21. Ukrainian drones reportedly blow up a Russian ammunition depot near Khrustalnyi in occupied Luhansk Oblast, setting off over an hour of secondary blasts
In "Ukraine reportedly strikes Russian ammunition depot in occupied Luhansk Oblast" (Kyiv Independent, Oct. 27), monitoring channel Exilenova+ says a strike-drone attack lasting several hours hit the depot overnight.
- Exilenova+ posted night footage of a large fire with secondary detonations lasting more than an hour.
- Drones also hit the city of Luhansk for hours and part of the city lost power, Euromaidan Press reports.
- Neither Ukraine's General Staff nor Russia's Defense Ministry has confirmed the depot strike; Russia says it downed 222 drones overnight.
- Khrustalnyi, about 65 km southwest of Luhansk, is a Russian rear logistics hub.
22. NPR reports from Fort Bragg on the U.S. military's push into drones and AI as Congress weighs safeguards for autonomous weapons
In "U.S. military forges ahead on autonomous weaponry" (NPR All Things Considered, Oct. 26), WUNC's Jay Price looks at Secretary Hegseth's new command for drones and AI alongside proposals in Congress to limit military AI.
- The piece notes Hegseth's announced command to accelerate drones and AI in warfare.
- One proposal discussed would require the Pentagon to keep data on battlefield decisions involving AI so mistakes can be understood and prevented.
Sources: NPR23. Is the Pentagon's demand signal for drones working? Industry and Army officials are divided, Breaking Defense reports
In "Is the Pentagon's demand signal for drones working? It depends on who you ask." (Breaking Defense, Oct. 26), drone makers and officials debate whether competitions and awards will produce the steady orders needed for a lasting U.S. drone industry.
- "We need to see sustained, normalized demand," says Performance Drone Works CEO James Slider; 1,000 drones a month for a year would be "very healthy."
- Army Materiel Command's small-drone manufacturing lead Jon Strzelec says the department is trying to "artificially induce" demand signals.
- The Pentagon plans nearly $55 billion for autonomous warfare in its FY27 budget, but most of it was requested through a reconciliation package, leaving its future uncertain.
Sources: Breaking Defense24. Ukraine's Himera and Denmark's GomSpace say OBRIA NANO, the first test satellite for a sovereign Ukrainian communications network, is operating in orbit
In "Himera and GomSpace launch Obria Nano satellite for Ukrainian military" (Ukrainska Pravda, Oct. 27), Himera says the satellite, launched Oct. 1 on SpaceX's Transporter-18, is undergoing planned tests for a future national constellation.
- The network would be run by a Ukrainian operator, cover all of Ukraine and complement European satellite systems, the companies say.
- Himera says reliance on foreign technology "creates strategic risks, especially in wartime."
- Next step: localizing satellite and ground-terminal production in Ukraine; no date has been set for a full network.
25. Skyborne's Cerberus MI, a reusable drone that fires 40 mm grenades or shotgun rounds and flies home to reload, joins the Blue UAS Cleared List
In "Shotgun-armed drone gets Pentagon green light" (Defence Blog, Oct. 27), Skyborne Technologies says its 18 kg Group 2 Cerberus MI can now be bought and flown across the U.S. military without a policy exception.
- It carries a HAVOC 40 mm grenade launcher or CHAOS 12-gauge shotgun and flies about 35 minutes armed.
- EXITUS AI targeting software computes firing solutions from more than 300 meters, with a human deciding to fire.
- Skyborne pitches it as a reusable alternative to one-way attack drones on the Blue UAS list.
Sources: Defence Blog · @Defence_blog post
Send us stories and accounts to watch
See something we missed? Know a program office, unit, researcher, or builder we should be following on X? Send the story link or the handle to [email protected] or tag @autowar25 in a post. Every tip gets read.
How AUTOWAR25 ranks
Every edition, we scan official channels, news, industry, research, and social posts for the 25 most important developments in autonomous warfare: drones, counter-drone systems, uncrewed vessels and vehicles, and military AI.
Stories rank by source first:
- Official means governments, militaries, and their leaders speaking on the record.
- Premium/Press means established news outlets.
- Industry/Research means companies, think tanks, and published research.
- Social means notable posts from analysts, reporters, and practitioners.
Within each group, newer stories rank higher and engagement breaks ties. A company press release stays out of the top 10 until someone else reports on it. Ongoing marks a developing story, and Carryover marks one from a previous edition that's still moving. Claims from warring parties are labeled as claims, and anything we couldn't independently confirm is marked unverified.
AUTOWAR25 comes out at 7 AM and 4 PM ET. Follow @autowar25.