The homeland defense mission is shifting under our feet. Lt. Gen. Joseph Jarrard said it plainly at the Space and Missile Defense Symposium: Northcom doesn’t have the sensors it needs to counter drone swarms launched from inside U.S. borders. Detection is the pacing problem, not intercept. That matters for anyone running security operations at critical infrastructure, defense installations, or large-scale events—because the threat isn’t hypothetical anymore, and the seams between military and civilian response are wide open.
Northcom was designated the lead synchronizer for homeland counter-UAS back in November 2024, and they’ve stood up Fly-Away Kits and run Falcon Peak experiments to test integration. But the real work is interoperability with federal and local law enforcement, who are buying their own systems that may or may not talk to DoD platforms. If you’re a CISO or VP of Physical Security at a cleared facility, you’re part of that seam whether you planned for it or not.
This is also a talent signal. Organizations serious about counter-UAS need people who understand both the sensor architecture and the operational coordination across jurisdictions—TS/SCI clearance, yes, but also someone who’s run joint ops or worked with interagency partners under pressure. That’s not a common profile, and it’s not getting easier to find.