Why is the U.S. military lagging in drone warfare?

Pars Today – Despite its massive military budget and access to advanced systems, the United States has fallen behind competitors such as Ukraine in the field of small, inexpensive drones, which have transformed the nature of modern battlefields.

The war in Ukraine has demonstrated that a commercial drone costing less than $1,000, when equipped with explosives, can destroy a multi-million-dollar tank.

According to Pars Today, citing the Iranian Students’ News Agency (ISNA), this fundamental shift in the cost-power balance has taken the U.S. military—accustomed to investing in fighter jets and tanks—by surprise. While training on quadcopter drones has begun at U.S. military bases, the pace of development still lags behind battlefield realities.

Warning from the highest level and taking cues from Ukraine

CNN has reported that U.S. defense officials have now recognized the severity of the lag in small, inexpensive drones.

In July, U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth called for accelerated adoption and deployment of drones across the military. Hegseth also emphasized the need to increase the lethality of weapons and warned that the real danger lies in falling behind in a field where technology is advancing at an astonishing pace.

According to CNN, Ukraine is not only a recipient of U.S. support but has also unexpectedly become a teacher for Washington.

The report notes that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky recently proposed, during a meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump, a $50 billion plan for joint drone production. Ukraine is now leveraging its field experience as a “geopolitical card”, an experience that, according to some reports, has been responsible for over 80% of Kyiv’s successful attacks.

Ukraine’s advantage and U.S. limitations

Ukraine is quickly adapting drone innovations based on direct battlefield feedback, whereas the United States struggles with structural obstacles and high costs. The use of inexpensive Chinese components is prohibited for U.S. companies, making domestic production up to 100 times more expensive. While Ukraine aims to produce four million drones in one year, the Pentagon has projected only 3,000 units over a two-year period.

Ukraine: The global laboratory for future wars

Ukraine has effectively become a global testing ground for drone warfare, attracting foreign startups eager to trial their weapons systems in the field. Analysts believe that the implications of this trend extend beyond Ukraine, and future battles—even in the Indo-Pacific region—will increasingly rely on cheap, mass-produced drones. Experts warn that this technological shift is irreversible, and the U.S. military must prepare itself accordingly.