The US Military's New Attack Drone Can Drop Its Own Precision Bomblets
Story by Jonathan H. Kantor • 1h
The U.S. military has been at the forefront of drone technology on the battlefield for decades. The U.S. armed forces use many different types of military drones capable of firing all sorts of munitions, but Northrop Grumman is developing a new one that may be a game changer. The Lumberjack is a single-use attack drone that carries something special under its wings, as it can drop its own individual bomblets on targets before engaging fully and smash itself into whatever it's being aimed at during a mission.
On top of that, the Lumberjack is fully autonomous, which puts it far and above most combat drones being employed today. One of the weapons the Lumberjack will likely be able to utilize is the Hatchet Miniature Precision Strike Munition. These are small 6-pound precision strike glide bombs that feature a compressed carriage design. Northrop Grumman revealed the Lumberjack in May 2025, revealing its impressive capabilities, such as its ability to be configured for electronic warfare, reconnaissance, and kinetic strikes, as well as an extended multi-hour loiter ability.
Should it go into full production, it could be used in a variety of conflicts. With the ability to drop multiple munitions on several targets, the Lumberjack will significantly upgrade the U.S.' uncrewed aerial system (UAS) capabilities by replacing older, more expensive aircraft like the MQ-1 Predator and the much larger MQ-9 Reaper with a fire-and-forget option that is likely to change how drones are used in combat operations moving forward.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/technology/the-us-military-s-new-attack-drone-can-drop-its-own-precision-bomblets/ar-AA1FAbza?ocid=msedgdhp&pc=HCTS&cvid=b0b324b0a7b4411ab95427d02814b127&ei=78
