Coyote

Coyote overview

The Coyote is a small, tube-launched expendable UAS developed by Raytheon Intelligence & Space (now RTX) for U.S. counter-UAS and target-system requirements. Originally designed as a low-cost aerial target, the Coyote family was subsequently marketed and procured in counter-UAS configurations. Public descriptions associate Block 2 with a proximity-fuzed kinetic effect and describe later configurations with additional electronic-warfare or other payload options; the blocks should not be treated as one identical vehicle or effect. Exact seeker, warhead, and payload fits are configuration-dependent.

The Coyote is described as an effector for the Army's LIDS (Low, slow, small Unmanned aircraft Integrated Defense System), operating with radar and command-and-control components. Raytheon and Army material describe vehicle and other launch options, but an advertised launch mode is not proof that every configuration has been fielded from every platform. The system's intended value is a relatively scalable counter-UAS effector; public sources do not establish a uniform engagement cost or a demonstrated ability to defeat every type of swarm.

The Coyote's evolution from aerial target to counter-UAS effector illustrates how the mission changed in response to small-drone threats. Its tube-launched form factor is promoted as compatible with dispersed launchers, but the earlier claim that it is the most platform-agnostic effector in the inventory is not independently supportable and is removed here. Similarly, Block 3 electronic-warfare or soft-kill descriptions are treated as manufacturer or program claims, not as proof of mass jamming results. Public releases through 2025 describe LIDS procurement and evaluation, but do not establish a complete Coyote Block 3 deployment map across Europe, the Middle East, and the Indo-Pacific.

RTX and U.S. Army public material through 2025 supports continued Coyote procurement and LIDS counter-UAS development, while public releases do not provide a complete 2026 order of battle or independently verified kill count. Block names describe different effectors and should not be treated as interchangeable performance claims. The early-2026 status is therefore qualified: public sources present Coyote as a contracted and field-oriented U.S. counter-UAS family, with the scale of Block 3 deployment and international adoption not fully public.

Armament

Block 2+: proximity-fuze kinetic warhead; Block 3: EW payload or directed energy module

Development and operational timeline

1. Jun 2015Raytheon reports initial Coyote Block 1 deliveries for U.S. aerial-target missions
2. Nov 2016Public reporting describes Coyote re-evaluation for counter-UAS use after small-drone incidents in Iraq
3. Mar 2019Raytheon and program reporting describe Block 2 production for the LIDS counter-UAS concept; quantity is not specified here
4. Aug 2020Army program material describes LIDS and Coyote Block 2 as moving toward operational use; the precise IOC scope is not specified here
5. Apr 2022Raytheon presents later Coyote counter-UAS configurations with electronic-warfare or other payload options; fielding status is not established by the exhibition
6. Sep 2023U.S. procurement reporting describes a multi-year LIDS production action; contract scope and Coyote quantities are not specified here
7. Jun 2024Raytheon reports Coyote counter-UAS testing against representative drone threats; public material does not establish a full-swarm combat result
8. Mar 2025Public reporting discusses LIDS/Coyote deployment or intended deployment in Europe; unit-level distribution is not independently confirmed here
9. Oct 2025Raytheon describes continued Coyote development, including range and electronic-warfare improvements; Block 3+ fielding is not confirmed
10. Jan 2026RTX and Army public material continue to support Coyote/LIDS development and procurement; 2026 fleet quantities remain undisclosed