Overview

• Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth ordered the Army to establish Joint Interagency Task Force 401 and to disestablish the Joint Counter-small Unmanned Aircraft Systems Office.
• The new task force is empowered to make procurement decisions, allocate up to $50 million per initiative, and hire outside normal federal processes to bring in technical expertise.
• The director will report to the deputy secretary of defense, submit unfunded FY2026 requirements within 30 days, recruit a technical lead and service personnel, secure office space within five days, deliver an implementation plan in 30 days, and recommend a dedicated test and training range in 30 days.
• JIATF 401 will consolidate department-wide C-sUAS research, forensics and exploitation efforts, and link to DIU’s Replicator 2 for scaling, while service-specific and Special Operations Command programs remain exempt.
• The reorganization responds to increasingly sophisticated drone threats, including swarms, and includes a 36-month sunset review to judge the task force’s performance.