Simulated drone swarm attack reveals gaps in C-UAS detection and mitigation

The Center for Cybersecurity Policy and Law (CCPL) has released a new report that examines the rise of malicious drone activity and potential gaps in the United States’ current counter-uncrewed aerial system (C-UAS) authorities, resources and preparedness.

Based on a three-hour, multi-agency security exercise hosted by Grand Sky in Grand Forks, North Dakota, in October 2025, CCPL’s Meeting the Homeland C-UAS Threat documents how a coordinated drone attack could overwhelm local, state and federal responders. The October exercise used a hypothetical scenario where a swarm of small commercial drones laden with explosives descended on people departing a university hockey game, leaving multiple dead and more wounded. Another swarm attacked the electric grid, causing a power outage across the entire town and surrounding area, while the nearby air base suffered considerable damage from a third wave of attack. Teams were tasked with responding to threat briefings that included inchoate warnings about a potential, impending attack; reacting to an attack that caused loss of life, injuries and damage to property; and engaging in recovery actions, while still facing the possibility of follow-on attacks.

CCPL says the exercise proved that effective detection is vital and that without it, there is no way to assess whether reported drone sightings are actual drones and whether they are being flown maliciously. The report notes that effective detection is “hindered by several limitations, including a lack of baseline mapping of what is “ordinarily” in the airspace, resource constraints, confusion about the kinds of detection measures permitted under current law, and legal restrictions on engaging in certain advanced detection measures that interact with the communication signal between a drone operator and the drone”. 

Read more at Unmanned Airspace