The Indiana National Guard said its Technology and Readiness Experimentation, or T-REX, framework was instrumental in advancing a new combat attack system from public demonstration to operational employment in just seven months.
Officials with the Indiana National Guard said their achievement directly answered the call from the Trump administration to accelerate the delivery of critical capabilities to the Joint Force. The U.S. Department of War demonstrated the Low-cost Uncrewed Combat Attack System, or LUCAS, in the Pentagon courtyard in July 2025. By February 2026, that same system was used in combat during Operation Epic Fury. The accelerated timeline “shattered traditional defense acquisition models,” the guard said.
Officials said the move from concept to combat in just seven months was made possible by the “speed of relevance” methodology at the heart of the T-REX program. Indiana National Guard officials said the T-REX framework fosters and environment of intense collaboration between operators, engineers and acquisition professionals, an atmosphere championed by the Office of the Under Secretary of War for Research and Engineering. The LUCAS achievement is a powerful new model for defense innovation that showcases that, officials said.
According to the DoW, TREX is a “sustained campaign of experimentation developed to support the Rapid Defense Experimentation Reserve (RDER) initiative.” The event is a full-scale exercise featuring tactical scenario demonstrations and a Prototype Technology Display to demonstrate and assess new and innovative warfighting capabilities.