- JIATF-401 has successfully tested CACI’s SkyValor counter-drone system at Marine Corps Air Station Yuma
- SkyValor has demonstrated long-range drone detection, tracking and defeat capabilities
- The demonstration was conducted in partnership with CBP and Joint Task Force-Southern Border
The Department of War’s Joint Interagency Task Force 401 has demonstrated the SkyValor counter-unmanned aerial system, or C-UAS, at Marine Corps Air Station Yuma, Arizona, DVIDS reported Sunday.
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What Capabilities Did SkyValor Demonstrate?
Conducted in coordination with Joint Task Force-Southern Border and U.S. Customs and Border Protection, or CBP, the test evaluated CACI-developed SkyValor’s ability to detect and counter small drone threats along the southern border. The platform successfully completed operational testing against multiple drone flight profiles, demonstrating its long-range detection, tracking, identification and defeat capabilities. Designed for continuous, automated sensing, SkyValor proved effective at identifying and engaging threats at extended ranges.
Why Is the System Important for Border Security?
Jose Gonzalez, a CBP liaison officer assigned to JIATF-401, said the evaluation incorporated feedback from military personnel and border agents operating along the southern border. He noted that non-kinetic defeat capabilities are an important component of layered counter-drone defenses.
Lt. Col. Alejandro Elizalde, southern border team lead for JIATF-401’s response division, said collaboration among government agencies was essential to validating the system for operational use and maintaining counter-drone coverage along the nearly 2,000-mile southern border.
The SkyValor demonstration is part of JIATF-401’s broader effort to accelerate the testing and deployment of counter-drone technologies. Earlier this year, the task force adopted standardized evaluation guidelines for C-UAS systems.
