Pentagon, FAA Will Conduct Anti-Drone Laser Tests in New Mexico

The Pentagon used a laser to shoot down what it thought was a ’seemingly threatening' drone operating near the U.S.–Mexican border.

A U.S. soldier holds a drone in the Pentagon parking lot in Arlington, Va., on June 14, 2025. Samuel Corum/Getty Images

The Pentagon and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) agreed to conduct an anti-drone “high-energy laser test” in New Mexico over the weekend.

The announcement comes a little more than a week after the FAA had to suddenly close airspace around Fort Hancock, Texas, because of what the agency at the time called “special security reasons.”