High-power microwave counter-swarm weaponprocuredpartial data
Leonidas
IFPC-HPM, Leonidas Gen II
A solid-state high-power microwave emitter that knocks out the electronics of many small drones at once at close range.
No public price No firm unit price. The US Army RCCTO paid $43,551,060 in July 2025 for two Gen II systems plus associated equipment, spares and test support. Epirus's CEO put the purchase price at '$10 to $20 million' per system; that is a maker estimate. There is no ammunition, so the per-engagement cost is mainly power.
| Maker | Epirus |
|---|---|
| Origin | United States |
| Max range | 2 km |
| Guidance | Fed by external sensors and command-and-control (integrates with FAAD C2 and Anduril Lattice); forms a wide microwave field rather than tracking one target |
| Launcher | Towed trailer (Army IFPC-HPM); vehicle-mounted and pod versions offered |
Leonidas uses gallium nitride amplifier modules instead of vacuum tubes, so it is smaller than older microwave weapons and can fire repeatedly without reloading. The Army bought four Gen I prototypes, delivered by 2024, and sent some to the Middle East; no combat kill has been publicly confirmed. The 2 km Gen II range and the 49-drone swarm takedown in August 2025 are Epirus figures from a company-run demonstration. Microwave weapons disable rather than physically intercept, so some taxonomies count them as hard kill only loosely.
Sources (10)
- TWZ: Army puts $43M bet on next-gen Leonidas (17 Jul 2025) (status)
- TWZ: Army puts $43M bet on next-gen Leonidas (17 Jul 2025) (unit_cost_note)
- Militarnyi: Leonidas destroys 49 drones (2 Sep 2025) (range_km)
- Epirus: Leonidas counter-electronics product page (guidance_or_cueing)
- Army Technology: Leonidas HPM system (guidance_or_cueing)
- Wikipedia: Leonidas (Epirus) (launcher)
- Epirus: Leonidas counter-electronics product page (launcher)
- Wikipedia: Leonidas (Epirus) (notes)
- TWZ: Army puts $43M bet on next-gen Leonidas (17 Jul 2025) (notes)
- Militarnyi: Leonidas destroys 49 drones (2 Sep 2025) (notes)
No freely licensed photograph found. The drawing above is the reference.
