EXECUTIVE SIGNAL
The US Army has awarded ThinKom Solutions an Other Transaction prototype project to deliver and evaluate a mobile high-power microwave counter-UAS capability. The agreement ceiling is $49 million and initial funding covers the first of four prototypes the Army requested. The award was issued through the Program Manager for Advanced Counter-Unmanned Aircraft System Effects, known as PM ACE.
ThinKom supplies the Alecto effector for government-led integration, testing and evaluation. The system is to be integrated with government-designated sensors, fire-control capabilities and a mobile platform, with field testing planned for 2027. Alecto is positioned against Group 1 and Group 2 drones and, enabled by the company's VICTS antenna, is designed to fire while moving and to offer a low cost per engagement.
One provenance caveat, and it is the reason to read the figures carefully. No separate US Army award release or federal award record was located. The contract detail traces to ThinKom's own announcement and to trade reporting of it. The $49 million is a ceiling on an agreement, not money obligated, and one prototype is funded of four requested.
SIGNAL 01, THE ARMY IS BUYING AN EFFECTOR, NOT A SYSTEM
The structure of this award is more informative than its value. ThinKom provides the effector; the government supplies the sensors, the fire control and the platform, and runs the integration itself. That is a deliberate choice to keep the architecture in government hands and treat the microwave emitter as a replaceable component.
It also caps what a supplier announcement can tell you about the programme. A ceiling on an effector agreement says nothing about the sensor or platform decisions that will determine whether the capability works.
STRATEGIC IMPLICATION
Government-led integration of a component-level award means the competitive picture is wider than the named vendor. Expect separate decisions on sensing and mobility, and read effector awards as one input to a system the Army is assembling rather than as a system contract.
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SIGNAL 02, ONE PROTOTYPE OF FOUR IS THE NUMBER THAT MATTERS
Initial funding covers one of four prototypes requested. The $49 million is the ceiling of the agreement. It is what could be spent if every option were exercised, not what has been committed.
Field testing is planned for 2027. Between now and then the observable milestones are whether the remaining three prototypes are funded and whether the test schedule holds.
STRATEGIC IMPLICATION
A ceiling figure attached to a single funded prototype is an option on a capability, not a procurement. The signal to watch is incremental funding of prototypes two through four, which would convert intent into programme momentum.
DRONE INTELLIGENCE ASSESSMENT
This is a credible step toward mobile non-kinetic drone defeat and a modest one in funding terms. High-power microwave answers a real problem, which is magazine depth against saturation attacks by cheap airframes, and firing on the move addresses the manoeuvre case that fixed directed-energy installations do not.
The evidential position should be stated plainly: the contract detail rests on a company announcement corroborated by trade press, not on an Army release or a federal award record. Treat the $49 million as a ceiling, the funded quantity as one, and 2027 as a plan. The programme becomes materially more interesting if prototypes two through four are funded on schedule.
What is established, and what is not
| Item | Status |
|---|---|
| Instrument | Other Transaction prototype project |
| Agreement ceiling | $49 million, a ceiling and not money obligated |
| Prototypes funded | One of four requested |
| Awarding organisation | PM ACE, Advanced Counter-UAS Effects |
| Integration | Government-led, with government-designated sensors, fire control and platform |
| Field testing | Planned 2027 |
| Target set | Group 1 and Group 2 drones |
| Army award release | Not located |
| Federal award record | Not located |
SOURCES & REFERENCES
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
How much is the ThinKom Alecto contract worth?
The agreement ceiling is $49 million, which is the maximum value of the agreement rather than money obligated. Initial funding covers one of the four prototypes the Army requested.
What is Alecto?
A mobile high-power microwave counter-UAS effector from ThinKom Solutions, enabled by the company's VICTS antenna, designed to fire while moving against Group 1 and Group 2 drones at a low cost per engagement.
When will it be tested?
Field testing is planned for 2027, following government-led integration with government-designated sensors, fire-control capabilities and a mobile platform.
Has the US Army confirmed the award?
No separate Army award release or federal award record was located. The contract detail traces to ThinKom's own announcement of 19 August 2026 and to trade reporting of it.
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ABOUT THIS BRIEFING
- Prepared by
- Drone Intelligence editorial team
- Published
- Q3 2026
- Last verified
- 23 August 2026
- Sources
- 4 primary sources cross-checked
- Confidence
- High on verified facts. Assessment and forecast labelled inline.
- Corrections
- Email paul@droneintelligence.ai with the briefing URL and the source you believe contradicts the claim.
Prepared under the Drone Intelligence methodology. Editorial decisions follow our editorial policy. Independence and disclosure standards at ethics.
CITE AS
“US Army Funds the First of Four Mobile Microwave Counter-Drone Prototypes” Drone Intelligence, Q3 2026. https://droneintelligence.ai/insights/thinkom-alecto-hpm-prototype
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paul@droneintelligence.ai