The test paired the TRV 150 resupply drone, manufactured by Survice Engineering Company, with a three-pack Advanced Precision Kill Weapon System developed by BAE Systems FalconWorks. The system fires 70 mm rockets and reflects a proactive, industry-led effort to address emerging military needs.
The event was supported by a broad group of military and aviation stakeholders. These included the Program Acquisition Executive-Maneuver Air, Aviation Future Concepts Directorate, the U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command Armaments Center, Capability Program Executive Aviation, and the U.S. Army Aviation Center of Excellence.
“Normally, industry waits for requirements to come out of the government, and they meet that requirement,” said Clark Dutterer, vice president of business development for Survice Engineering. “In this case, we saw that there was something that we could prove out, a new capability, and we didn’t want to wait for a requirement. We self-funded this to go ahead and do that.”
Jeff Blank, a test engineer with the Tactical UAS Program Office, highlighted the importance of anticipating future operational requirements. He said the team must proactively address incoming calls for solutions to stay ahead of the advanced capabilities being sought by the Army.
Blank said the development effort is ultimately focused on delivering rapid, effective and continuous support directly to the warfighter. The Army said the test reflects the need to prepare capabilities before formal requirements are issued.
The TRV 150 is currently fielded as a logistics and resupply platform. It is a program of record with the Marine Corps and the Army and can carry up to 150 pounds.
Rob Baltrusch, chief engineer at Survice Engineering, described the drone as the “pickup truck” of the sky. He said the aircraft provides power, data and expansion ports for a range of payloads, regardless of what it is carrying.
The TRV 150 uses an interface based on the Android Tactical Assault Kit and simplified, encrypted communications. The system is designed to reduce pilot workload by automating key calculations.
“It calculates all of the range estimation and takes a lot of the pilot duties away from the Soldier, to where they can literally give it a grid coordinate, wait, and it tells you if it can make it there, delivers the payload, and calculates the route,” Baltrusch said.
Because the system depends heavily on autonomous calculation and drone technology, safety and process efficiency were central to the testing. Tristan Decker, a system safety engineer for the DEVCOM Armaments Center, emphasized the strong safety culture surrounding the Fort Rucker operations.
Decker said the site’s rapid adoption of rigorous safety protocols, particularly for unmanned aircraft systems, had helped streamline operations. He said the team had anticipated and addressed bureaucratic hurdles while balancing mission success with process efficiency.
The Fort Rucker tests focused on the drone’s flight control software and physical response when firing rockets. Specifically, the team evaluated yaw and impulse compensation during launches from the outboard tubes of the horizontally mounted launcher.
Dutterer said integrating APKWS on a tactical drone could significantly change how the military deploys precision munitions. He said the approach could place capabilities now associated with larger platforms into the hands of smaller units.
“APKWS is currently deployed from Apache and other more exquisite assets, so core and above deployment,” Dutterer said. “With that same effect on a TRV 150, you’re bringing it down to potentially battalion and below, and making it more expeditionary. You can wrap different [concepts of operations] around it for different units, depending on what their needs may be.”
The project has been self-funded through internal research and development since January 2025. The Fort Rucker event followed a successful single-shot demonstration at Dugway Proving Ground last May.
That earlier demonstration included an air-to-air engagement against a Group 2 fixed-wing drone and two air-to-ground shots. The Fort Rucker event marked the first time the system flew and fired the three-shot launcher.
The testing also aligns with senior military leader guidance requiring all unmanned aerial vehicles to have a lethal payload option. The approach uses existing inventory such as the Hydra family of rockets.
The Fort Rucker testing is intended to prepare the system for upcoming Joint Readiness Exercises, known as J-Rex. The drone and rocket system is scheduled for tier-two experimentation at White Sands Missile Range in June and Eglin Air Force Base in September.
Those events will test the system in base defense, air defense and counter-UAS roles. The tests are expected to assess its ability to defeat one-way attack drones.
