Marines Train With Handheld Swarming Drones That Can Also Be Fired From 40mm Grenade Launchers

The drones measure just seven inches in length and weigh under half a pound. Multiple Drone40s can operate together as a swarm after launch, or even network together with other UAS platforms to operate as a heterogenous swarm. Aside from being deployed by hand or from grenade launchers, a video on DefendTex’s website shows the drones operating in a launch-on-demand swarming mode after taking off from tubes placed on the ground.

The drones are reusable when employed in a way that doesn’t result in their destruction, and DefendTex even says they are waterproof, which could make them suitable for recovery when used in missions at sea or in bad weather. A fact sheet from the DefendTex website states that the drones’ targeting and control functions can be accomplished via “integration with existing deployed smart devices using readily available communications technology” and an encrypted radio datalink to a portable ground control station. In addition, the Drone40 boasts a…