The US Army concluded its Flytrap 5.0 counter-UAS exercise in Lithuania in mid-May, with Anduril's Lattice software serving as the C2 backbone. Lattice integrated data from over 30 industry sensors and effectors, enabling operators to execute coordinated fire control during live-fire demonstrations. Twelve systems were evaluated by the Army as part of a layered air defense assessment.
Lattice operates as an open-architecture platform, allowing third-party developers to integrate hardware via a Software Development Kit (SDK). During Flytrap 5.0, industry partners with no prior exposure to Lattice integrated complex electromagnetic sensors, radars, and kinetic effectors in real time — a process that would typically require weeks or months with closed C2 systems. The SDK served as the integration layer, reducing setup friction in a dynamic field environment.
Counter-UAS engagements compress decision windows to seconds. Flytrap 5.0 tested operations under these conditions, where effective fire control depended on rapid sensor fusion and track cueing across distributed assets. Lattice fused inputs from multiple sources into a unified threat picture, enabling operators to relay tracks to effectors and prosecute targets during the exercise's culminating live-fire event.
The exercise took place on NATO's Eastern Flank, where drone incursions regularly test air defense postures. The operational environment mirrors threats seen in Ukraine and other contested zones, where low-cost UAS platforms and autonomous munitions require layered defenses that move with maneuver forces rather than relying on static installations.
Flytrap 5.0 findings will inform future CUAS integration efforts as the Army continues deployment of IBCS-M, the fire control platform built on Lattice. The exercise validates the shift toward software-defined C2 in environments where hardware interoperability and speed determine survivability.
