Building Our Future
The Future Force Report
Podcast: Beyond the Buzz: FPV Drones, DoD Reality, and the Future Fight
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Podcast: Beyond the Buzz: FPV Drones, DoD Reality, and the Future Fight

The next war will need more than just FPVs
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🛰️ Overview:
There’s been a wave of commentary claiming the U.S. military is ignoring FPV drones. In this episode, Brooke Fallon sets the record straight. From DIU’s Blue UAS list to the Army’s multi-tiered drone programs, the Department of Defense isn’t blind to the rise of FPVs—it’s already integrating them across formations.

But the story doesn’t end there. As the Pentagon plans for future fights—especially in the Indo-Pacific—the need for autonomous systems extends far beyond small drones. We dive into why the future force demands breakthroughs in range, endurance, modularity, mission software, and multi-domain handoff.

🎯 In this episode:

  • The myth that DoD is ignoring FPVs—and why it’s false

  • DIU’s Blue UAS Cleared List and Army’s sUAS programs

  • RAND’s latest findings on uncrewed aircraft systems

  • Tactical risks of uncoordinated drone use and jamming

  • Lessons from Ukraine: fiber-optic control and EW resilience

  • What the next fight requires:

    • Long-range, one-way drones

    • Launches from ships, subs, and drones

    • Standardized, modular hardware

    • Autonomy, GNSS-denied nav, and precision target discrimination

💡 Whether you’re in defense tech, policy, or command, this episode reframes the drone debate for what really matters: today’s tactical edge—and tomorrow’s strategic reality.

📬 Got thoughts on this episode? Reach out—we want to hear from you.

Subscribe, share, and follow along as we map the future of defense.

🎙️ The Future Force Report is a production of Building Our Future.

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Intro / outro music: Experimental Cinematic Hip Hop by ⁠Rockot⁠.

Cover art created with OpenAI's Dall-E 3 model.

Brooke Fallon is a fictional host created using OpenAI's GPT-4o and ElevenLabs' Eleven Turbo v2.

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