US Army Launched Effects

Launched Effects are small, expendable or attritable uncrewed aircraft that the US Army launches from helicopters, aircraft or ground vehicles to gather intelligence, jam sensors, act as decoys or strike ahead of the launching platform. The effort began as Air Launched Effects for Army aviation, with ten agreements worth $29.75 million for air vehicles, mission systems and payloads awarded in August 2020 to support PEO Aviation's Unmanned Aircraft Systems Project Office and the Future Vertical Lift Cross-Functional Team, and in 2023 the Army chose a five-company team around Anduril's Altius 700 to build a medium-range prototype. The Army now plans short, medium and long-range classes, and after a short-range user demonstration in August 2025 it chose AEVEX's Atlas for initial short-range fielding in October 2025, aiming to field initial launched effects to all active-duty divisions by the end of 2026.