US Marines Train to Jam Enemy Drones Before They Reach Amphibious Assault Ships

Marines aboard the amphibious assault ship USS Makin Island trained off the coast of California with a Light Marine Air-Defense Integrated System, or L-MADIS. The system is designed to find, track, and jam hostile drones before they get close enough to threaten Marines, vehicles, or ships.

The exercise was part of deployment preparation training with the 13th Marine Expeditionary Unit. No hostile drone appeared during the drill, but operators described how the system would sever a drone’s link to its controller, potentially causing it to crash, hover, or return toward its operator.

L-MADIS uses two small tactical vehicles: one serves as a command-and-control hub with radar, optics, and a radio-frequency sensor, while the other carries electronic warfare gear that can disrupt a drone’s radio link. A SkyView sensor can listen for drone signals without transmitting, helping Marines search for threats while reducing the risk of revealing their own position.

Once the system senses a drone, it can check a military database of drones known to operate in the region. If it identifies a match, operators can track details such as type, direction, distance, and operating frequency, then tune the jammer to interfere with that frequency.

The Marine Corps is rushing counter-drone equipment to units after small, inexpensive drones reshaped battlefields in Ukraine and the Middle East. Lt. Gen. Jay Bargeron, the Marine Corps' deputy commandant for plans, policies, and operations, said giving squads, platoons, and companies a way to defend against one-way attack drones is “maybe one of the biggest holes in our swing.”

That urgency makes L-MADIS a key piece of a broader counter-drone push. The upgraded package on Makin Island replaced an older version with lighter, more mobile vehicles and updated sensors and jamming equipment.

The system can support Marines with detection, tracking, jamming, cameras, weapons, and feeds to commanders aboard ship. It can also be paired with other weapons, including Stinger missiles, for larger drones, helicopters, and small aircraft.

But operators emphasized that equipment alone is not enough. Cpl. Julian Moore said L-MADIS is “surprisingly intuitive,” while warning that training and expertise in the vehicle are what make the system effective.