The U.S. Army has deployed radar systems along the U.S.-Mexico border to track drones used by Mexican drug cartels for smuggling and surveillance.
Last week, the Department of Defense (DOD) released images of soldiers from the Army’s 10th Mountain Division, stationed at Fort Drum, New York, training with AN/TPQ-53 and AN/MPQ-64 Sentinel radars in Arizona. The 10th Mountain Division is among several U.S. military units that have deployed personnel and equipment in support of the enhanced border security mission launched after President Donald Trump took office in January.
“HHB Divarty [Headquarters and Headquarters Battalion, Division Artillery] 10th Mountain Division raise their drone detection capabilities at the southern border,” the caption for one of the pictures stated.
The AN/TPQ-53 radar system, developed by Lockheed Martin, can detect mortars, rockets, and artillery while pinpointing their sources. Meanwhile, the AN/MPQ-64, designed by Raytheon, is a versatile radar capable of detecting planes, helicopters, drones, or missiles and reporting their range, bearing, and elevation.
Defense officials said the deployment is part of a collaboration between the U.S. Northern Command and the Department of Homeland Security to augment U.S. Customs and Border Protection along the southern border.
The deployment follows the U.S. military’s decision to send the USS Gravely, a Navy guided-missile destroyer designed for ballistic missile interception, to the U.S.-Mexico border.
In the two months since Trump assumed post, his administration has initiated a multifaceted campaign to secure the U.S.-Mexico border, focusing on combating cartels, transnational criminal organizations, and illegal immigration.
In February, General Gregory Guillot, head of U.S. Northern Command confirmed the U.S. military has increased its airborne intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance operations to monitor Mexican drug cartels.
In the same month, the President signed an order designating eight Latin American drug cartels and criminal organizations as Foreign Terrorist Organizations and Specially Designated Global Terrorists, granting law enforcement expanded authority to target their finances, impose sanctions, and prosecute supporters.
As of March 2025, approximately 9,000 U.S. military personnel are stationed along the U.S.-Mexico border to support Trump’s crackdown on immigration and smuggling, according to the DOD.
