- The U.S. Navy issued a Sources Sought Notice seeking low-cost small unmanned aircraft systems for the Marine Corps with production capacity reaching up to 10,000 units within twelve months.
- The notice requests detailed technical, cost, and supply-chain data from industry to assess commercially available sUAS platforms for reconnaissance, relay, and modular payload missions.
The United States Navy has issued a new Sources Sought Notice seeking industry input for low-cost Small Unmanned Aircraft Systems intended for the United States Marine Corps, publishing the request on January 6, 2026, through Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR).
The announcement invites companies to submit detailed information on commercially available sUAS platforms with First Person View capabilities that can be produced at high volume and delivered on compressed timelines.
According to the notice, NAVAIR’s Program Executive Office for Unmanned Aviation and Strike Weapons, acting through the Navy and Marine Corps Small Tactical Unmanned Aircraft Systems Program Office (PMA-263) at Patuxent River, Maryland, is conducting market research to evaluate potential systems that meet operational and production requirements. The service said responses will help inform future procurement planning for Marine Corps units that require rapidly deployable reconnaissance, surveillance, and target acquisition assets.
The Navy stated that candidate systems must comply with the 2020 National Defense Authorization Act Section 848, the 2023 NDAA Section 817, and the American Security Drone Act of 2023. The request also allows vendors to demonstrate a path to compliance if their platforms are not yet fully aligned with those statutory requirements.
As noted in the announcement, the Marine Corps is seeking solutions with low total system cost, rapid reconfigurability, and modular payload capacity. The Navy said the Marine Corps prioritizes a threshold air-vehicle unit cost under $4,000 and requires full system pricing that includes aircraft, ground control elements, communications devices, goggles, batteries, and charging infrastructure. The notice emphasizes that all cost data must be broken down in detail and include any available bulk-purchase discounts.
The Navy is also assessing industrial capacity to scale production to quantities in the thousands within a short period. The service said vendors must demonstrate the ability to deliver an initial quantity of systems by April 2026, with production capability for 5,000 air vehicles within six months and up to 10,000 within twelve months. The notice requests that companies disclose existing inventory available for immediate delivery.
The Marine Corps intends for the selected systems to support reconnaissance, communications relay, and additional mission sets involving lethal payload delivery or electronic support. According to the notice, the Marine Corps requires air vehicles that Marines can modify in the field without vendor assistance, including the integration of third-party armaments or non-kinetic payloads. The service added that Marines must be able to conduct repairs independently to maintain operational availability during high-usage periods.
The new sUAS Sources Sought Notice demonstrates the Marine Corps’ effort to secure a large-scale, low-cost drone solution that can support surveillance, communications, and lethal missions.