The US Northern Command reports it has “defeated” 11 cartel drones by the Army’s Multipurpose High Energy Laser (AMP-HEL) as of September 4, 2026. The Army first deployed the laser system in the Rio Grande Valley of Texas on August 25, 2026. Each laser blast uses about $3 worth of energy, which is considerably less than the value of the target it shoots down.
Authorities along the Texas-Mexico border have been sounding the alarm about the cartel drones for several years. Gloria Chavez, formerly the Chief Border Patrol Agent of the Rio Grande Valley Sector, told shocked Congress members in 2023 that the number of cartel drones along her stretch of the border outnumbers the drones available to her agents by 17-to-one.
Her testimony was mirrored by a South Texas Sheriff:
“In the past 31 days of 2023, there have been 1,937 Mexican Cartel drone incursions in three South Texas border counties,” -Sheriff "Benny" Martinez, Brooks County, Texas
The Air Force General in charge of U.S. Northern Command told a Senate Armed Services Committee in March, 2024 that there are likely more than 1,000 incursions by unmanned aircraft systems along the U.S.-Mexico border each month.
“The number of incursions was something that was alarming to me as I took command.” - Air Force General Gregory M. Guillot
The cartels openly brag about their drone fleets by posting video to the internet showing them in action:
The image below shows a Cartel del Noreste (CDN) drone operator's camera view of migrants being moved by one of its smuggling guides on the US side of the Rio Grande near Laredo. If the Border Patrol is spotted near the group, the cartel will use radios or cell phones to warn the guide to take evasive action.
In one infuriating instance, cartel drone operators could be heard laughing about the fatal crash of a National Guard helicopter involved in a counter-narcotics operation in March, 2024 along the Rio Grande in footage they posted to social media:
And while the cartels mostly use their drones for surveillance, they have also used them to fly drug loads across the Rio Grande into Texas:
But now, the US Army’s Northern Command is actively taking on the cartel drone fleets along the Southern Border through “Operation Ardent Vanguard.” In addition to the eleven drones it recently disabled with lasers, more than 300 drones have been “defeated” this calendar year (more than 100 in August alone), primarily by jamming the radio signals the cartels use to control them.
The cartel drone operators aren’t laughing now.
Are you surprised at the extent of Mexican Cartel drone activity along the US Southern Border?
Share your opinions in the comments to this article.
Great article Jack. What a difference in leadership from the Biden administration and the Trump administration.