Army leaders signaled Wednesday that drone-heavy warfare and recent conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East are reshaping the service’s aviation and missile defense strategy, driving new scrutiny of helicopter programs and costly Patriot interceptor systems.

The comments come as the Army’s fiscal year 2027 budget request sharply cuts the funding request for helicopter procurement, including reducing Apache funding from roughly $361.7 million to about $1.5 million, Black Hawk funding from about $913 million to roughly $39.3 million and Chinook procurement from roughly $629 million to about $210 million, while increasing investment in drones, autonomy and low-cost battlefield technologies.

The transformation push is already extending beyond procurement. The Army previously announced plans to cut roughly 6,500 active-duty aviation positions over fiscal years 2026 and 2027 — including pilots, flight crews and maintainers — as leaders shift resources toward unmanned systems and drone warfare.

It remains unclear whether the procurement reductions ultimately will shrink aviation fleet sizes, extend the service life of aging aircraft or delay planned replacement cycles.

Army leaders suggested the battlefield lessons driving the changes are already shaping budget decisions, as the service redirects money away from some traditional aviation programs toward drones, autonomy and low-cost mass systems.

«Absolutely, as we look across the aviation portfolio … we’re re-looking that,» Assistant Army Secretary Brent Ingraham said during a Pentagon media roundtable Wednesday. 

Ingraham said the Army is reassessing how traditional manned aircraft fit alongside larger unmanned systems increasingly capable of missions once handled by helicopters.

The proposed aviation cuts already have drawn concern on Capitol Hill. 

During a recent Senate Armed Services Committee hearing May 12, Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., warned that the Army’s budget request included «zero H-64 Apaches, zero Chinook Block IIs and one UH-60 Black Hawk,» arguing the service was divesting critical capabilities before validating replacements.

«Your department’s budget request cuts over $5 billion from the industrial base in the aviation sector alone, effectively shutting down all current Army aviation platforms,» Rep. Rosa DeLauro, D-Conn., top Democrat on the Appropriations Committee, pressed War Secretary Pete Hegseth during a May 12 House Appropriations hearing. «How did the department arrive at the conclusion that reducing procurement for these Army aviation platforms strengthens rather than weakens the aviation industrial base?»

Hegseth acknowledged the Pentagon was reconsidering parts of the plan.

«There are some very good things in the Army Transformation Initiative, and there are some things that we’ve needed to get another look at,» Hegseth told lawmakers during a House hearing after facing questions about the scale of the aviation cuts.

Hegseth said Pentagon leaders were focused on ensuring the Army does not create «aviation capability gaps» as it transitions toward more unmanned systems and next-generation technologies.

‘EYES IN THE SKY’: ARMY DRONE EXPERT EXPLAINS US STRATEGY ON INNOVATION AS GLOBAL CONFLICT LOOMS

Army leaders said the rapid spread of cheap drones is forcing the Army to rethink how it buys and fields aircraft, missile defenses and battlefield technology.

«We know we don’t want to continue to use a Patriot missile to shoot down a cheap drone,» Ingraham said. «You’ve got to get on the right side of the cost curve.»

The concern has become increasingly urgent after the U.S. and its allies burned through large numbers of expensive missile defense interceptors during the Israel-Iran conflict and broader Middle East operations, fueling Pentagon concerns about stockpile depletion and the long-term sustainability of relying on multimillion-dollar defensive systems against cheap drones and missiles. 

The Colombian army activated its first unmanned aircraft battalion at the military base in Tolemaida, Colombia, on Oct. 10, 2025, to counter illegal armed groups using drones in conflict. (Raul Arboleda/AFP)

Officials also described a new allied drone and counter-drone procurement marketplace designed to speed foreign military sales and standardize interoperable systems across partner nations. Driscoll compared the effort to «an Amazon for war.»

Officials said the marketplace is expected to become available to roughly 25 U.S. allies and partners worldwide, initially focused on drone and counter-drone systems before potentially expanding to additional capabilities and countries.

The platform will for now only allow allies to buy U.S. capabilities. 

US DRAINS CRITICAL MISSILE STOCKPILES IN IRAN WAR AS YEARSLONG REBUILD LOOMS

The Army also is launching a rapid competition to develop low-cost interceptors designed to counter drones and cruise missiles without exhausting multimillion-dollar Patriot missile stocks.

Ingraham said companies will have roughly 120 days after an upcoming industry event to demonstrate technologies ranging from rocket motors and seekers to fully integrated interceptor concepts.

«Even if you don’t have it all on the ground … bring it,» he said.

The transformation effort reflects growing concern inside the Pentagon that cheap drones, autonomous systems and mass-produced weapons are rapidly changing the economics and survivability assumptions of modern warfare, particularly after conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East exposed vulnerabilities in traditional armored and aviation-heavy battlefield concepts.

Army leaders signaled that drone-heavy warfare and recent conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East are reshaping the service’s aviation and missile defense strategy, driving new scrutiny of helicopter programs and costly Patriot interceptor systems. (Anthony Bailey/Handout via Reuters)

Army leaders increasingly suggest future wars will rely less on small numbers of expensive manned platforms and more on large quantities of cheaper, networked and rapidly replaceable systems capable of surviving in drone-saturated battlefields.

Army Secretary Daniel Driscoll said at the roundtable that the service is attempting to overhaul what leaders view as decades of broken acquisition practices that left the Army too slow to adapt to rapidly changing battlefield conditions.

«How do we dig down deep into the system to change the broken processes that have led to so many bad outcomes over the last 30 years?» Driscoll said.

Driscoll said the Army had lost Congress’s trust after decades of acquisition failures and budget overruns.

«The United States Army had in some ways lost Congress’s trust over the last 30 years that we could do big new projects, keep them on time, keep them on budget,» he said.

He later referenced the Army’s now-canceled M10 Booker armored vehicle program as an example of the type of procurement failure leaders are trying to avoid.

«When we go to Congress and say, ‘Hey, trust us to develop a new platform. This one will not turn out like the Booker tank,’» Driscoll said.

Driscoll argued the Army already is trying to field new capabilities on dramatically accelerated timelines more similar to wartime adaptation cycles seen in Ukraine than traditional Pentagon acquisition schedules.

«When Operation Epic Fury kicked off, we were able to on day five go start the process to purchase 13,000 Merops counter-drone interceptors,» Driscoll said.

«By day 10, we had contracted for something we had never purchased before,» he added. «They were starting to flow into theater in the thousands by day 20.»

Army officials also said the service is trying to rapidly improve how weapons systems, sensors and battlefield networks communicate with one another after studying Ukraine’s ability to quickly integrate commercial and military technologies during the war.

«The Ukrainians were highlighting to us how their open architecture system allowed information to pass between nearly all of their sensors and radars,» Driscoll said. «That empowered so many things that they could do that we just can’t do yet.»

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«At this exact moment at Fort Carson, there are 450 developers and programmers jailbreaking all of our equipment,» he added.

«I’m cautiously optimistic within a month from now we will have jailbroken literally hundreds of pieces of equipment.»

El secretario de Estado de Estados Unidos, Marco Rubio, se reúne este viernes con los ministros de Relaciones Exteriores de la OTAN en la ciudad sueca de Helsingborg, en un encuentro atravesado por las tensiones entre Washington y sus aliados europeos por la guerra con Irán, la incertidumbre sobre el despliegue militar estadounidense en Europa y el sorpresivo anuncio del presidente Donald Trump de enviar 5.000 soldados adicionales a Polonia.

La reunión en la ciudad sueca de Helsingborg comenzó con la expectativa de que los aliados europeos puedan conocer de primera mano, a través de Rubio, los planes de Washington sobre su presencia militar en el continente y el futuro de su compromiso con la alianza, en momentos en que la relación atraviesa uno de sus períodos de mayor tensión desde el regreso de Trump a la Casa Blanca.

Antes de partir hacia Suecia, Rubio dejó en claro el malestar de Washington con varios miembros de la OTAN por su postura durante el conflicto con Irán. “El presidente no les está pidiendo que envíen sus aviones de combate. Pero se niegan a hacer cualquier cosa. Estamos muy molestos por eso”, declaró ante periodistas.

Rubio también cuestionó a España por haber restringido el uso de bases militares para operaciones vinculadas a la guerra. “Tienen países como España negando a Estados Unidos el uso de estas bases; entonces, ¿por qué están en la OTAN? Esa es una pregunta muy justa”, afirmó. “Para ser justos, otros países de la OTAN han sido muy útiles. Pero necesitamos discutir eso”, agregó.

Las declaraciones del jefe de la diplomacia estadounidense llegaron en medio de una nueva escalada verbal de Trump contra varios aliados europeos, a quienes acusó de no respaldar suficientemente la campaña militar de Estados Unidos e Israel contra Irán. El mandatario incluso deslizó en los últimos días que podría reconsiderar la permanencia de Washington dentro de la OTAN.

Horas antes de la reunión en Suecia, Trump sorprendió además a los socios de la alianza con el anuncio de un nuevo despliegue militar hacia Polonia.

“Basado en la exitosa elección del ahora presidente de Polonia, Karol Nawrocki, a quien tuve el orgullo de respaldar, y en nuestra relación con él, me complace anunciar que Estados Unidos enviará 5.000 tropas adicionales a Polonia”, escribió Trump en Truth Social.

El anuncio representó un giro después de semanas de incertidumbre por decisiones contradictorias de Washington sobre su presencia militar en Europa. A comienzos de mes, Estados Unidos había comunicado el retiro de 5.000 soldados de Alemania, una medida que generó preocupación entre los aliados europeos por su impacto sobre la capacidad de disuasión frente a Rusia.

Diplomáticos y funcionarios europeos señalaron que el nuevo compromiso con Polonia no despejó las dudas, ya que no estaba claro de dónde saldrían esos efectivos adicionales ni cómo se integran en los planes militares previamente anunciados por Washington.

La confusión se profundizó además con otros cambios en la estrategia estadounidense, incluida la cancelación del despliegue previsto de misiles Tomahawk de largo alcance en Alemania y la intención de reducir el volumen de capacidades militares que Estados Unidos pone a disposición de la OTAN en caso de crisis.

En Helsingborg, los aliados europeos esperan aprovechar la presencia de Rubio para intentar reducir la tensión con Washington y enviar señales de que Europa está dispuesta a asumir mayores responsabilidades en materia de seguridad.

Varios gobiernos ya hicieron saber que están preparados para colaborar en la protección de la libertad de navegación en el Estrecho de Ormuz cuando las condiciones lo permitan, después de que Irán restringiera el tráfico marítimo durante la guerra.

Un diplomático europeo citado por Reuters explicó que la reunión también apunta a medir el estado real de la relación con la Casa Blanca de cara a la cumbre de líderes de la OTAN prevista en Ankara. “Uno de los objetivos en Helsingborg es ver si hemos pasado página o no antes de la cumbre de Ankara”, señaló.

El secretario general de la OTAN, Mark Rutte, buscó bajar el tono sobre la reducción de tropas estadounidenses y defendió que cualquier cambio debe preservar la capacidad defensiva de la alianza. “Apoyamos eso, pero tiene que hacerse de una manera en la que la disuasión y la defensa en general sigan siendo fuertes”, afirmó.

Rutte también volvió a reclamar mayores compromisos de apoyo a Ucrania por parte de los miembros de la alianza. “También hay muchos que no están gastando lo suficiente cuando se trata del apoyo a Ucrania”, dijo.

(Con información de REUTERS y AFP)

Socialist New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani is courting powerful Wall Street leaders after months of attacking wealthy New Yorkers and pushing higher taxes on corporations.

Given New York City’s outsized role in U.S. banking, investing and corporate headquarters, business leaders warn financial instability in the Big Apple could reverberate nationwide.

Mamdani’s meetings this week with JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon and Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon underscored growing concerns that the mayor’s push to tax wealthy individuals and businesses could clash with the financial sector that underpins the city’s economy.

And critics tell Fox News Digital that they view the sit-downs as part of a growing contradiction at the center of his economic agenda in the world’s largest business and finance hub.

BLUE-STATE TAX BURDEN FUELS AMERICANS FLEEING TO REPUBLICAN-LED SOUTHERN STATES

«The Mamdani administration has come to recognize that so much of their agenda depends on having successful businesses and wealth creators in the city,» Manhattan Institute economic policy expert Adam Lehodey told Fox News Digital.

«Simply alienating them isn’t going to solve any of New York’s problems,» he added.

Lehodey argued the city cannot fund progressive priorities like free childcare and subsidized housing without strong tax revenue and a healthy private sector. He warns that a «tax-the-rich strategy» could worsen the city’s economic challenges because it might discourage investment in New York.

«It’s a good thing that he’s meeting with them, but now he needs to follow up and deliver something substantive,» Lehodey said. «The current tax-the-rich strategy is only going to worsen the problems unless he follows up and says, ‘Let’s look at what we can do to make it easier to invest in New York State and New York City.’»

Mamdani’s outreach has also extended beyond major banking executives.

The socialist mayor recently reached out to Citadel founder Ken Griffin after previously criticizing the billionaire hedge fund manager over his Manhattan penthouse and personal wealth. Mamdani stood outside Griffin’s multi-million-dollar property in the city to tout his proposal for higher taxes on second homes in NYC worth more than $5 million.

CHICAGO KNOWS WHAT HAPPENS WHEN KEN GRIFFIN TURNS ON A CITY, NOW MAMDANI MAY FIND OUT

Citadel told FOX Business that Griffin «welcomes thoughtful, serious conversations about the policies that can grow the city’s economy and create more opportunity for all New Yorkers,» while cautioning that «reckless political theater serves no purpose.»

Amazon founder Jeff Bezos supported Griffin when on Wednesday he criticized Mamdani’s rhetoric toward wealthy business leaders. The world’s fourth-richest person accused politicians of using an «age-old technique» of «picking a villain and pointing fingers.»

FROM FREE BUSES TO CITY-OWNED GROCERY STORES, HERE ARE MAMDANI’S KEY ECONOMIC PROMISES

«It isn’t right… to stand in front of Ken Griffin’s house and act like he is some kind of villain,» Bezos told CNBC. «Ken Griffin isn’t a villain, he hasn’t hurt anybody, he’s not hurting New York, in fact quite the opposite.»

While Bezos said debates over raising taxes on top earners are legitimate, he criticized what he described as the «vilification» of wealthy Americans and argued that overspending — not insufficient tax revenue — is the root of the nation’s fiscal problems.

The tensions underscore the difficult balancing act facing the mayor of the nation’s financial capital: Wall Street and high-income taxpayers generate a major share of New York City’s tax revenue, even as progressive activists push for a more aggressive redistribution of wealth.

The Citadel founder is clashing with New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani over taxes targeting the ultra-wealthy and intensifying crime, reviving the same tensions that drove him to pull his business and billions out of Chicago. (Spencer Platt/Aaron Schwartz/Bloomberg/Getty Images / Getty Images)

Nicole Huyer, a senior policy analyst at The Heritage Foundation, characterized the meetings with Dimon and Solomon as an effort to repair strained ties with New York’s business community after Mamdani’s «tax the rich» campaign rhetoric.

She cautioned that policies perceived as hostile to corporations and wealthy taxpayers could accelerate corporate and capital flight from New York, pointing to Griffin’s relocation to Florida as one example.

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«Jamie Dimon and David Solomon lead two of the nation’s most influential financial institutions and have enormous influence over the financial sector and labor market,» Huyer told Fox News Digital. «If policies drive major firms or wealthy taxpayers out of New York City, the impact on tax revenue, jobs and broader economic activity could be significant.»

Huyer added that «pitching class warfare and then pivoting to court Wall Street executives risks appearing politically performative.»