US Army opens testing ranges to private drone companies without government contracts

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Private drone companies can now request access to US Army testing ranges

Companies no longer need existing government partnerships before requesting range access

Five military facilities across America and Morocco are joining the programme

Private drone companies without existing government contracts can now request access to the US Army test ranges nationwide.

The arrangement removes a requirement for companies to have existing government partnerships before requesting access to military ranges.

Army Secretary Dan Driscoll framed the change as an effort to cut through bureaucratic obstacles facing smaller defense contractors.

What companies can access and where

Five ranges now fall under this new access system, spanning four US states and one overseas location.

Dugway Proving Ground in Utah specializes in long-range fires testing for companies developing precision strike capabilities, whilst West Cibola Range in Arizona currently focuses exclusively on drone and counter-drone system evaluations.

Camp Shelby in Mississippi and Camp Grayling in Michigan round out the domestic testing locations available.

The fifth site, the Africa Multidomain Training and Experimentation Center, sits in Morocco.

Beginning in September 2026, Camp Grayling will host a recurring test simulating degraded electromagnetic conditions found in Ukraine.

This quarterly event will let companies trial drone and counter-drone systems against jamming and disrupted signals.

To get access to any of these sites, companies will have to apply through testrange.army.mil, though the Army cannot guarantee a specific site or timeline.

"A company with a good idea shouldn't need a team of lawyers and a program of record just to prove their equipment works," said Dan Driscoll, Army Secretary.

"So we fixed that. One front door — testrange.army.mil — a real person to walk you in, and on the other side, everything the modern battlefield demands: contested airspace, degraded signals and the space to test at real scale."

The pressure driving this shift

The expanded access reflects urgency inside the Pentagon around accelerating drone and counter-drone development timelines.

The Defense Department recently formed Joint Interagency Task Force 401, a unit built to streamline counter-drone procurement.

That task force has already stood up an online marketplace connecting military buyers directly with technology suppliers.

Behind this push sits a separate concern, with reports suggesting depleted Patriot missile interceptor stockpiles nationwide.

The United States reportedly used roughly two-thirds of its Patriot interceptor inventory during its recent conflict with Iran, as Washington appears to have underestimated how quickly a prolonged confrontation with Iran could consume its most valuable air-defense interceptors.

However, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth disputed a CNN report claiming military commanders had flagged critically low interceptor stockpiles.

Regardless of that disagreement, the Pentagon continues pressing defense contractors toward faster production of essential weapons systems, and the range initiative sits within a broader goal of hastening development for drones, counter-drone tools, and interceptors.

Leading this effort is the US Army Test and Evaluation Command, working alongside several partner organizations nationwide.

Those partners include the Mississippi and Michigan National Guard units, along with U.S. Africa Command's regional support.

For companies previously locked out by lengthy contracting requirements, this shift represents a meaningfully lower barrier to entry.

Via Defense News