MARIETTA, Ga. — Defense giant Lockheed Martin has unveiled MORFIUS™, a high-power microwave system designed to neutralize more than 50 enemy drones in a single flight, offering a reusable, lower-cost alternative to traditional interceptors amid rising threats from mass drone attacks.
While the system was announced at the Farnborough International Airshow in England, the news carries particular resonance in metro Atlanta, home to Lockheed Martin’s major manufacturing and engineering campus in Marietta.
Lockheed Martin Unveils MORFIUS Drone-Killer System as Marietta Plant Continues Driving Georgia Aerospace Innovation
The Marietta facility, which recently marked 75 years of operations, employs more than 5,600 people, generates an estimated $4.5 billion in annual economic impact for Georgia, and remains a cornerstone of U.S. military aircraft production, including the C-130J Super Hercules and center wing assemblies for the F-35 Lightning II.
According to Lockheed Martin, MORFIUS (Mobile Radio Frequency-Integrated UAS Suppressor) X-Rotor is a ground-launched, airborne high-power microwave (HPM) platform that uses directed microwave energy to disrupt or disable the electronics of multiple unmanned aircraft at once. Unlike conventional systems that fire one interceptor per target, MORFIUS is designed for “one-to-many” engagements, potentially delivering a significantly lower cost per kill against large drone swarms. The system is field-recoverable and reusable, sensor- and command-and-control agnostic, and does not require dedicated fire-control radars.
“By leveraging a lightweight, field-reusable high-power microwave architecture, we provide the most effective, low-cost solution on the market today,” said Randy Crites, vice president and general manager of Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control Advanced Programs. The company noted that earlier MORFIUS variants have flown since 2017, with recent testing of flight, intercept, and lethality conditions conducted in Arizona, California, and Oklahoma. Prototype production is being accelerated to support the U.S. Defense Department’s Rapid Response Counter-UAS efforts.
As commercial and military drone swarms grow larger, more autonomous, and more affordable for adversaries, directed-energy solutions like MORFIUS are positioning themselves as a critical layer in next-generation counter-unmanned aircraft systems (C-UAS) defense. The technology aims to address the cost imbalance of using expensive kinetic interceptors against cheap, mass-produced drones.
For the Atlanta region, Lockheed Martin’s Marietta operations represent far more than a single plant. The site has produced thousands of C-130s over decades, supports F-22 sustainment, contributes to F-35 production, and hosts Skunk Works innovation efforts. Company officials and state leaders have highlighted its role in job growth (including more than 1,200 added since 2019) and its status as a long-standing economic engine for Cobb County and Georgia.
While MORFIUS itself is advanced under Lockheed Martin’s Missiles and Fire Control organization, the broader company’s continued investment in advanced capabilities underscores the strategic importance of its Georgia footprint. Local workers and suppliers remain integral to the defense industrial base that develops and fields systems protecting U.S. and allied forces.
Lockheed Martin says it is moving the technology from testing toward field availability as drone threats evolve. For residents of Marietta and metro Atlanta, the announcement is another reminder that one of the world’s leading aerospace and defense companies continues to innovate from a deep local base—building the aircraft, components, and technologies that shape modern warfare while supporting thousands of Georgia jobs.
More From AtlantaFi.com:
