The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) is soliciting ideas from industry, universities and others on how to protect land and sea forces against the increasing number of potentially hostile small unmanned aircraft systems (UAS).

DARPA said Aug. 11 that the proliferation of compact, low-cost drones sold commercially has created new threats to warfighters. It issued a request for information (RFI) on technologies that could be fielded in three to four years to detect, identify, track and neutralize small UAS.British Police To Test A Small Fleet Of Five Drones

The suggested solutions should be able to evolve rapidly to keep pace with advances in threats and tactics, the RFI says. They should also address rocket, artillery and mortar threats as much as possible.

“System flexibility, deployability and affordability will be major design drivers, as the system will only be an effective deterrent and defensive capability if it can be widely deployed to protect a large number of assets,” DARPA wrote. “Therefore, this RFI seeks information on concept performance capabilities, unique and enabling technologies, technology maturity levels, system architecture, concepts of operation, and system affordability.”

Responses are due Aug. 26. Based on its review of those submissions, DARPA will invite some of the respondents to a “mobile force protection” workshop in Arlington, Va., in late September. The RFI responses also could spur the development of new DARPA programs.

Experts say an enemy could use small UAS to conduct surveillance, deliver munitions or crash into something valuable. Some military officials have argued that the United States is already seriously vulnerable to such aircraft and needs to act quickly to defend itself. In an Army journal last year, Col. Matthew Tedesco, a capabilities manager at the U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command (TRADOC), wrote that “the U.S. military has been “slow to acknowledge the UAS threat” and could be “unpleasantly and tragically surprised” on the battlefield if it does not improve its counter-UAS capabilities soon.