Wearable counter‑drone tech enters frontline service across US, Ukraine and IDF units

Defense & Tech by The Jerusalem Post understands that Autonomous Guard’s Wearable Kit counter-drone system has been used by Ukrainian troops and undergone operational testing with maneuvering forces in Gaza by the IDF. 

The system is a compact RF detection and jamming device that can detect hostile drones up to two kilometers away, providing early warning for units on the move. Its jamming capability extends to three kilometers, enabling forces to disrupt drone operations before the aircraft reaches visual range. It provides directional alerts, allowing troops to take cover or reposition before a drone identifies their location.

When interception is required, SkyLock’s RF guns, which are handheld jamming devices that do not require precise aiming, can be used to neutralize incoming drones. The company says this combination of early warning and rapid response is designed to reduce exposure during reconnaissance and targeting cycles.

SkyLock’s Sky Spotter Pro, a wearable system used at higher command levels such as battalion forward command posts, allows operators to preload friendly drone data during mission planning, reducing false alarms and improving identification accuracy. This helps troops distinguish between hostile and friendly platforms.

Sky Spotter Pro can detect drones at ranges of up to five kilometers, or three kilometers in complex terrain. It can also identify the drone operator's location, enabling units to direct fire and close the operational loop more quickly. Additionally, SkyLock provides a wearable module that identifies friendly drones to prevent accidental interception.

Wearable counter‑UAS systems have seen widespread use in the Russia‑Ukraine conflict, where both sides rely heavily on small drones for reconnaissance and targeting. According to Autonomous Guard, interest in wearable systems is increasing among militaries, police forces, border units, and prison services.

The system has been sold to hundreds of US Army operations in the US European Command (EUCOM) and other combatant commands worldwide, including Ukraine’s Armed Forces. In July, EUCOM tested the system during a large-scale exercise in Germany. The Defense Post reported that participants included the 2nd Cavalry Regiment, a 4,800-person agile unit stationed at the Rose Barracks in Vilseck that specializes in a full spectrum of operations in support of EUCOM and the NATO alliance.

As AI‑enabled drones are becoming more resilient to jamming, defense officials say wearable counter‑UAS systems are likely to play a growing role in infantry protection by providing mobile coverage in environments where aerial threats are persistent, adaptive, and increasingly autonomous.

‘Hunted by autonomous systems’

In a keynote address at the Air, Space and Cyber Conference in Maryland in September, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Dan Caine said US forces should assume they will be “hunted by autonomous systems, jammed across the spectrum, and tracked in real time,” citing lessons from the Russia‑Ukraine war. 

According to a report in DefenseScoop, Caine said FPV drones equipped with AI‑enabled computer vision can now continue toward targets even when GPS signals or control links are disrupted.  

“We have to transition the joint force to be prepared to fight and win our future wars by generating and delivering lethality at scale with an agile, optimized, high-low mix of combat capabilities to give the young members of the 2.8 million-member all-volunteer joint force the tools that they need before they need them,” Caine said.

Referring to the Russia-Ukraine war, Caine said that the life expectancy of a new Russian recruit on the frontline in certain areas was as little as 20-30 minutes.

“Think about that. This is what happens when low-cost precision [weaponry] is fielded fast, adapted quickly, and scaled across the battlefield. The price of lethal exchange is decreasing day over day,” he said.

“In the future fight, advantage will go to the side that can see first, who can understand first, decide first, and act first, and along the way be a learning organization,” Caine said, adding that “AI is here now and it’s already changing the way militaries see, sense, decide and act.”