Pete Hegseth Promises Hundreds of Thousands of One-Way Attack Drones This Year

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said Wednesday that the Pentagon will field "hundreds of thousands" of one-way attack drones this year and millions more after that. He also said the department had no such program when he took office.

Hegseth made the pledge on an autonomous warfare panel at the Association of the United States Army's 2026 Annual Meeting and Exposition in Washington, D.C., Fox News reported. Protesters against the Iran war interrupted him again and again.

"Ultimately, we will be fielding hundreds of thousands of one-way attack systems this year and into the millions in years to come at a pace that this department's never ever seen before," Hegseth said.

He gave no sourcing for either figure.

What Hegseth Said About Drone Dominance

The panel was built around Project Agincourt, the Pentagon's push to expand its use of unmanned and autonomous systems. Hegseth said the drone effort started "almost the minute we got here."

"President put out an executive order, we got $1 billion of funding on drone dominance, which we put straight into the hands of operators out into the field," he said. "I mean, when we showed up, there was not a single one-way attack program at the Department of War, not one."

Hegseth also said he wants the number of prime defense contractors to grow to "10 or 15 by the end of our term." He said "our Pentagon bureaucracy has been at war with them for 20 years," referring to newer companies trying to break into defense work.

What the Record Shows on One-Way Attack Drones

Part of Hegseth's account checks out. President Donald Trump signed Executive Order 14307, "Unleashing American Drone Dominance," on June 6, 2025. In December 2025, the Pentagon announced a $1 billion program to buy more than 300,000 small one-way attack drones. Military Times reported that the program followed the order and a July 10 Pentagon memo.

The pace Hegseth described is faster than the department's own plan, though. When the program was announced, the Pentagon said it expected to field tens of thousands of drones in 2026 and hundreds of thousands by 2027. The full 300,000 were due by 2028.

The program buys drones through competitions it calls "gauntlets." The first one was set to have twelve companies produce a combined 30,000 units. In July, 19 vendors were selected to compete in the final stage of the second gauntlet, with each finalist delivering 120 drones. The top five finishers receive orders of 4,000 to 8,000 prototype drones per mission area, depending on placement, with total orders worth up to $300 million. Neros Technologies completed its full 2,400-unit Gauntlet I delivery, while Ascent Aerosystems had delivered 80 of the 1,600 drones it was ordered to build as of mid-June, Aviation Today reported.

The record also contradicts Hegseth's claim that there was "not one" program. Under the Biden administration, the Army chose AeroVironment's Switchblade 600 loitering munition, a one-way attack drone, for the first tranche of the Pentagon's Replicator initiative. In 2024, Army officials said they planned to field more than 1,000 of them within about a year.

Iran War Protests Interrupt the Panel

At least five protesters disrupted the panel in its first half hour. They called him a "coward" and a "war criminal" before security removed them, Fox News reported. Audio from the event captures audience members chanting "U.S.A." at one point.

"But we're here talking about a deadly serious topic," Hegseth said earlier, before the first interruption.

The war is now more than eight months old. As of late September, about 50,000 U.S. service members had been deployed, 18 had been killed and more than 800 had been wounded, ABC News reported. On Sept. 24, the Senate rejected a House-passed war powers resolution 49-50. Republican Senators Rand Paul, Susan Collins, Lisa Murkowski and Thom Tillis voted for it. Democratic Senator John Fetterman voted against it.

A Pew Research Center survey conducted from Sept. 28 to Oct. 4 found that 65 percent of Americans disapprove of how Trump is handling the war and 33 percent approve. Among Republicans and Republican-leaning independents, approval fell from 69 percent in March 2026 to 63 percent.

Some on the right are uneasy as well. On Monday, Steve Bannon warned the war is "metastasizing".

What Happens Next

Whether the department can reach "hundreds of thousands" before the year ends, and millions after that, will depend on how fast those orders turn into drones that reach soldiers.