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US Microwave Weapon Just Defeated Fiber-Optic Drones for the First Time
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![Photo of Vlad Litnarovych]( "Photo of Vlad Litnarovych")
US defense company Epirus successfully tested its Leonidas high-power microwave system against fiber-optic–controlled drones, marking what the company says is the first documented case of an electromagnetic system disabling this type of unmanned aircraft, with the results announced on the company’s official website on January 13.
According to Epirus, trials conducted at a US government test range in December demonstrated that a compact version of Leonidas was able to neutralize a drone guided via a fiber-optic link.
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Such drones are considered particularly difficult to counter, as they are immune to traditional radio-frequency jamming.
Epirus described the test as a breakthrough, saying it was “the first recorded instance” in which an electromagnetic-effects system successfully defeated a fiber-optic–controlled drone, opening new possibilities for counter-UAS operations as drone technology evolves.
Fiber-optic drone? No problem. pic.twitter.com/UsfXNpayN6
— Epirus (@epirus) January 13, 2026
The test used the Leonidas Vehicle Kit (VK), a mobile and reduced-size variant of the full Leonidas system mounted on a pickup truck.
While Epirus has not disclosed detailed performance specifications, analysts assess that the VK configuration is intended for short-range protection of high-value assets and frontline units.
Leonidas is a directed high-power microwave (HPM) system mounted on a vehicle platform. Rather than relying on jamming, interception, or kinetic fire, it emits intense microwave energy that disrupts the internal electronics of drones, forcing them to lose functionality and crash.
Unlike conventional counter-drone methods, Leonidas creates an electromagnetic field that induces internal electronic failure within unmanned aerial systems, even when they do not rely on radio communications.
This capability is increasingly relevant as militaries turn to fiber-optic drones to bypass electronic warfare defenses.
LEONIDAS: "THE US ARMY'S NEW ANSWER TO DRONE SWARMS"
— WORLD AT WAR (@World_At_War_6) December 13, 2025
The U.S. military has successfully tested high-power microwave weapons capable of neutralizing drone swarms in seconds.
One notable system is called Leonidas, developed by the U.S. defense firm Epirus.
In an live-fire… pic.twitter.com/HhaZdadqnq
Epirus has positioned Leonidas as a scalable counter-UAS solution designed to address emerging threats on modern battlefields, where low-cost drones are being deployed in growing numbers and with increasing resistance to traditional countermeasures.
Earlier, Ukrainian company Ptashka Drones released footage showing combat strikes carried out by fiber-optic–guided FPV drones with a claimed operational range of up to 50 kilometers.
