Pentagon to give Cape Canaveral a much-needed anti-drone security overhaul

The Space Force’s Cape Canaveral Space Force Station is set to get a security overhaul, according to reports. Specifically, it will be strengthened against small drone attacks; this will be part of a larger program to overhaul security at many of the nation’s spaceports.

Bases like this are increasingly being seen as too important and “busy” for traditional airbase-style security to realistically cope. The core issue is that Cape Canaveral’s existing air-defense and surveillance setup is well tuned for things like fixed-wing aircraft.

It is not, however, designed to reliably spot, identify, and stop something like a DJI-sized quadcopter flying low, slowly, and perhaps among buildings or clutter. Upgrades will be provided by the Joint Interagency Task Force 401 (JIATF 401), a specialist Pentagon-run counterdrone task force.

“We’re going to see an injection of new capability here in the very short term from JIATF 401, based on the latest and greatest in technology that’s out there,” Space Force Colonel Brian Chatman told Defense One in an interview. “That’ll be integrated in with everything we have today,” he added.

Beefing up security at Cape Canaveral

As for what the base can expect to get, such information is clearly top secret. That said, we can speculate it will likely feature things like small-target radar, radio-frequency sensors specialized in detecting drone/control signals, and optical/infrared cameras.

We can also expect systems for identifying and tracking drones, and then some means of defeating them either kinetically or electronically.

“While I will not speak to specific capabilities at specific locations, our strategic installations are prioritized for c-UAS fielding,” Lieutenant Colonel Adam Scher, a JIATF 401 spokesperson, told Defense One.

“In this capacity, we work in support of U.S. Northern Command and each of the Services to ensure their installations are protected from the illicit use of drones,” he added. “There is no silver bullet, and we remain focused on accelerating the delivery of innovative capabilities at speed and scale,” Scher told them.

A juicy target for drone attacks

Security concerns of this nature are well founded, as things like rocket launch pads are a very attractive target for bad actors. Destruction aside, if a drone can damage a rocket, fuel infrastructure, power supply, or other critical component, it could potentially disrupt launches for quite a while.

So, a relatively cheap drone could therefore cause damage vastly disproportionate to its cost. Given that sites like Cape Canaveral are very busy spaceports too (around 109 launches were clocked up last year alone), such an attack would severely hamper US space-based operations. This is especially the case given plans to ramp up launches to around 1,000 a year by 2030.

“The Space Force can’t do it alone. It relies heavily on a partnership with the Air Force for base operations support personnel, and so we are advocating across the Air Force for additional bodies, whether it’s firefighters or security forces or civil engineers, to come in and continue support as we have this expansive growth,” Chatman said.

“One big thing that’s changed over time to where we are today is you’re seeing a whole-of-government approach and focus on the launch industry,” he added.