The Army Chief of Staff’s initiative Transforming in Contact (TiC) used deployments and troop rotations to field-test commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) equipment to allow units to be dynamic on the battlefield, emulating current tactical operations in the Russia-Ukraine War. TiC 2.0 has taken the concept further, expanding the contact effort to other formations, including two divisions, two armored brigade combat teams, two Stryker brigade combat teams, and additional formations in the Army National Guard and Army Reserve. One of the key aspects of TiC highlighted by GEN Randy George, the Chief of Staff of the Army, during a 2024 conference is that “At the end of this [fiscal year], every warfighting function, including protection and sustainment, will be part of our transformation efforts.”
Authorized Drones
As part of the Integrated Tactical Network, the Army’s network equipment is one of the many pieces being tested during TiC. However, no equipment has become more transformative to tactical operations than drone technology.
TiC units test COTS drones and technology, traditional loitering munitions, mortars, and other sensor equipment to encompass the sensor-to-shooter system. Commercial drones are used in conventional intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance capabilities to help Soldiers make decisions on the battlefield and degrade enemy formations. One of the outputs of testing has been additional companies that passed the vetting required for onboarding policy-compliant, commercial small unmanned aircraft systems (sUAS) through the Defense Innovation Unit and the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition & Sustainment, known as the Blue UAS Cleared List. The vendors listed are the top tier companies that offer small unmanned systems. These companies have drones listed for government partners for acquisitions and do not require a DoD exception to policy to procure or operate.
The two transformative drones are the Neros Archer and PDW C100 with the Multi-Mission Platform (MMP). The Archer is a high-performance, first-person-view (FPV) drone that allows the pilot to see what the drone sees. The Archer is designed and priced for large-scale deployment while optimized for long-range missions and electronic warfare resistance. The PDW C100 MMP variant is a portable sUAS that supports multiple mission sets. The key feature related to drone munitions sustainment is the system’s design around universal payload integration with a munitions-release device, setting the standard for DoD drone munitions. In contrast, there must be a DoD exception to the policy to operate approved Blue-UAS drones to act as lethal drones or carry lethal payload sUAS.
UAS training has already been overhauled at the Army’s UAS Training Center, expanding curriculum from small Group 1 FPV drones to advanced Group 3 Future Tactical UAS systems. It is not a matter of whether sUAS will be lethal and carry lethal payloads but when the Army plans to organize and train for the inevitable. As seen on the frontline of Ukraine, drones are at the forefront of combat operations, along with the drone munitions they carry, to conduct loitering, drone-dropping, and drone-firing operations.
Drone Munitions Standards
TiC 2.0 can catalyze Army sustainment formations to evolve with drone technology, just as combat arms integrate sUAS within their formations. This requires robust standards for integrating new technology. Using conventional munitions in drone delivery systems requires careful consideration to ensure appropriate munition-to-drone pairing for target selection. Drone-dropping munitions can be created from primary file formats used for 3D printing. It is crucial to have accurate and reliable digital files for drone-dropping operations. These files must contain 3D drone-specific munition models with security measures to prevent unauthorized access and manipulation. Importantly, drone munitions need certification and standardization of all 3D-printed parts and materials.
Additionally, drones now conduct loitering and attacking operations. Drones acting as loitering munitions are designed to remain airborne and engage targets of opportunity. Also, drones fire munitions at various scales, usually rockets or drone-designed missiles. Drones must have robust flight control systems to accompany the selected munitions being employed. Arming mechanisms for drone munitions are critical safety features that prevent accidental detonation during handling, transport, and flight.
Lastly, drones conducting drone-dropping operations use munitions-release devices. These devices must be designed to reliably and accurately release munitions from a drone platform. Drones with directional-dropping kits drop conventional munitions on targets. The kits ensure munitions achieve the desired impact angle and reduce dispersion.
To ensure consistent performance, the standards must address factors from the drone-munitions selection process, design, materials, and deployment mechanisms. Standardized drone munitions were demonstrated by Ukrainian Defense Industries at the International Defense Exhibition 2025, the largest defense exhibition and conference in the Middle East hosted in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. Moreover, with drone munitions standards in place, the work to sustain the drone munitions ecosystem can eventually be done at and by Army sustainment organizations.
Ordnance Units
The TiC 2.0 initiative is the chance to provide ammunition support activities throughout TiC formations to perform responsibilities directly related to munitions maintenance, renovation, and modifications. From the brigade ammunition transfer and holding point, modular ammunition transfer point, echelons above brigade ordnance companies, and Reserve theater ammunition battalions, TiC can provide sweeping change and a chance to practice lost skills in our ordnance organizations.
Doctrine and policy writers do not have to go far to find the current practice. Ukraine conducts clandestine production ordnance operations, supplying the Ukrainian military with drone munitions for the fight on the front lines. The ordnance organizations provide munitions on an as-needed basis. The frontline units arrive at the distribution points and select drone munitions that fit the drones they use for their missions. These munitions production facilities are an ingenious solution to a need and a continuously scarce munitions resource. The Ukrainian ordnance production facility receives and salvages various ammunition and missiles from the front that have been damaged and become unserviceable for combat use but still contain essential explosives and rounds. UNITED24 Media quotes the organizational commander as stating, “We can’t afford to throw away ammunition like the U.S.” The salvaged equipment is used to arm FPV drones for loitering operations or other drones for drone-dropped operations.
In recent history, munitions maintenance, inspections, and renovation and modification work procedures have not been done on a large scale by conventional ordnance units. Along with the necessary fielding of equipment, such as 3D printers, ordnance units need the proper training, skill set, and approved work procedures from the defense munitions industrial base. If TiC 2.0 wants to make a real impact, ordnance units have the potential to provide sustainment for their organizations and must provide drone munitions to joint forces throughout the area of operations. For context, during Operation Iraqi Freedom, between September 2003 and October 2004, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers received and stored about 369,000 tons of captured enemy ammunition (CEA). At the same time, it destroyed nearly 165,000 tons of CEA and an additional 82,000 tons of CEA with the aid of coalition partners. Looking to the future conflict, with proper permission, knowledge, and expertise, all munitions could be turned into drones ready for frontline organizations to use as needed without drawing from their combat loads.
Conclusion
TiC 2.0 is expanding its transformation efforts, focusing on integrating drone technology. The initiative tests commercial drones and related equipment, leading to the adoption of munitions-ready drones. This exploration necessitates the development of drone munitions standards, which include loitering, drone-dropping, and attacking operations. TiC 2.0 offers ordnance units the opportunity to regain critical skills in munitions maintenance and modifications that provide drone munitions to joint forces. This fundamental shift requires individual and organizational training in new equipment, such as 3D printers, and creating work procedures to create a sustainable and responsive in-theater drone munitions supply chain.
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CW4 Michael K. Lima currently serves as the senior expeditionary sustainment command (ESC) munitions officer with the Materiel Management Branch. He is assigned to Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 19th ESC, at Camp Henry, South Korea. He participated in the Training with Industry program with a prime missile defense contractor and was a training developer for the U.S. Army Ordnance Corps and School at Fort Lee, Virginia. He holds a doctorate in business administration from Baker College.
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This article was published in the summer 2025 issue of Army Sustainment.
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