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Last Update: 09/22/2026 at 11:34 PM EST
Border Laser Counter-Drone Operations
Coverage from UPI, Florida's Voice, and others
U.
S. forces used the Army Multipurpose High Energy Laser to disable or destroy three drones suspected of supporting cartel surveillance and migrant-smuggling activity near Texas’s Rio Grande Valley. U.S. Northern Command and other officials said the aircraft posed threats to military and Customs and Border Protection personnel, while reporting differed over the precise location and jurisdiction of the engagements. The episode illustrates the military’s use of directed-energy counter-UAS technology and the practical challenges of operating it near civilian airspace. It also prompted questions about legal authority, coordination with border agencies, and Mexico’s sovereignty concerns.
Looking Back
21 Day Timeline
Aug 27
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All Articles29 articles
Important
Mexico and U.S. forces began Aguila Alta on August 31 along the Tijuana-San Diego border to detect and disable criminal drones.
9/9/2026 • Counter-Drone & Airspace Security • General
The U.S. Army reported that AMP-HEL laser deployments reduced suspected cartel-linked drone flights by about 75% in Texas's Rio Grande Valley after August intercepts.
9/7/2026 • Counter-Drone & Airspace Security • General
U.S. Northern Command reported in September 2026 that Joint Task Force-Southern Border used the Army's AMP-HEL laser against 11 unauthorized drones along the U.S.-Mexico border.
9/4/2026 • Counter-Drone & Airspace Security • General
Joint Task Force-Southern Border used the Army Multipurpose High-Energy Laser at the U.S.-Mexico border to defeat 11 cartel-linked UAS by September 4.
9/4/2026 • Counter-Drone & Airspace Security • General
U.S. forces disabled three suspected cartel-linked commercial drones with a high-energy laser near the Rio Grande Valley on August 25 and 26.
9/3/2026 • Counter-Drone & Airspace Security • General
U.S. Northern Command used the AMP-HEL high-energy laser near the U.S.-Mexico border on August 25 and 26 to defeat three cartel-linked drones.
9/2/2026 • Counter-Drone & Airspace Security • General
U.S. troops used the Army Multi-Purpose High Energy Laser in Texas on Aug. 25-26 to destroy three suspected cartel-linked drones threatening military and border personnel.
9/1/2026 • Counter-Drone & Airspace Security • General
U.S. Army personnel used the Army Multipurpose High Energy Laser at Fort Bliss, Texas, earlier this week to defeat three drones believed linked to drug cartels.
8/31/2026 • Counter-Drone & Airspace Security • General
U.S. Northern Command destroyed three suspected Mexican cartel drones near the southern border earlier this week using an Army high-energy laser system.
8/30/2026 • Counter-Drone & Airspace Security • General
U.S. Northern Command said Joint Task Force-Southern Border used an AMP-HEL directed-energy system in southern Texas to defeat three hostile drones on two August nights.
8/29/2026 • Counter-Drone & Airspace Security • General
The U.S. Army used AMP-HEL to intercept suspected cartel drones in Texas during Operation Ardent Vanguard, after FAA and Pentagon approval for domestic laser operations.
9/16/2026 • Counter-Drone & Airspace Security • General
Mexico and United States defense agencies began Operation High Eagle along the San Diego-Tijuana border to detect and neutralize criminal drones.
9/11/2026 • Counter-Drone & Airspace Security • General
U.S. Northern Command said on September 4, 2026, that U.S. forces had used an Army high-energy laser to down 11 cartel-associated drones along the U.S.-Mexico border.
9/4/2026 • Counter-Drone & Airspace Security • General
The U.S. military took down approximately 100 suspected cartel drones along the southern border in August through coordinated operations involving Task Force-Southern Border, Mexican authorities, and multiple counter-drone systems.
9/3/2026 • Counter-Drone & Airspace Security • General
Interesting
NCITE researchers and U.S. officials reported cartel drone surveillance and laser interceptions at the U.S.-Mexico border, with 300 drones stopped since the beginning of the year.
9/15/2026 • Counter-Drone & Airspace Security • General
The Pentagon said the U.S. Army used a Multipurpose High Energy Laser System near the U.S.-Mexico border to destroy drones allegedly linked to cartel activity.
9/10/2026 • Counter-Drone & Airspace Security • General
Additional
Joint Task Force-Southern Border used AeroVironment's AMP-HEL laser to defeat three cartel-linked drones this week along the southern U.S. border, at undisclosed locations.
8/28/2026 • Counter-Drone & Airspace Security • General
The U.S. military used the Army Multipurpose High Energy Laser this week along the southern border to stop three suspected cartel-linked drones.
8/28/2026 • Counter-Drone & Airspace Security • General
U.S. military forces used an Army high-energy laser on August 25-26 in Texas's Rio Grande Valley to destroy three cartel drones near the Mexican border.
8/28/2026 • Counter-Drone & Airspace Security • General
U.S. military forces used an Army high-energy laser in Texas's Rio Grande Valley this week to destroy three cartel drones near the Mexican border.
8/28/2026 • Counter-Drone & Airspace Security • General
U.S. military forces used laser weapons three times near Texas' Rio Grande Valley to shoot down cartel drones involved in border surveillance and smuggling support.
8/28/2026 • Counter-Drone & Airspace Security • General
The US military destroyed three cartel-linked drones with an AMP-HEL laser near Texas's Rio Grande Valley on August 25 and 26, 2026, amid unresolved cross-border airspace questions.
8/28/2026 • Counter-Drone & Airspace Security • General
U.S. Northern Command used a high-energy laser near the southern U.S. border between Tuesday and Wednesday to destroy three drones reportedly linked to cartels.
8/28/2026 • Counter-Drone & Airspace Security • General
U.S. military forces used the Army Multipurpose High Energy Laser near southern Texas on Tuesday and Wednesday to destroy three cartel drones threatening personnel along the Mexican border.
8/28/2026 • Counter-Drone & Airspace Security • General
U.S. military forces used an AMP-HEL laser to destroy three alleged cartel surveillance drones Tuesday night through Wednesday morning near the U.S.-Mexico border.
8/28/2026 • Counter-Drone & Airspace Security • General
The Joint Task Force-Border Security used the Army Multipurpose High Energy Laser to destroy three cartel drones this week along the U.S. southern border.
8/28/2026 • Counter-Drone & Airspace Security • General
U.S. military forces used an Army high-energy laser late Tuesday and early Wednesday near Texas' Rio Grande Valley to destroy three cartel drones threatening border personnel.
8/27/2026 • Counter-Drone & Airspace Security • General
U.S. military forces used the Army Multipurpose High Energy Laser to destroy three suspected Mexican cartel drones near the U.S.-Mexico border in southern Texas this week.
8/28/2026 • Counter-Drone & Airspace Security • General
US forces used the Army Multipurpose High Energy Laser to defeat three cartel-linked drones near the southern border between Tuesday and Wednesday.
8/28/2026 • Counter-Drone & Airspace Security • General