MICHIGAN — The U.S. Army announced it is opening five military test ranges to private companies developing missiles, drones, and other weapons. Army Secretary Dan Driscoll stated that companies will have access to a test range within 30 days of requesting it.

Driscoll announced the initiative at a military testing range in Michigan on August 7, 2026. The four domestic ranges opened for testing are Camp Grayling in Michigan, Camp Shelby in Mississippi, Dugway Proving Ground in Utah, and West Cibola at Yuma Proving Ground in Arizona. The overseas range available for testing is the Multidomain Training Area in Morocco.

The Army launched an online portal that allows munitions manufacturers to request access to a test range. An Army "concierge" helps companies confirm availability and book a time on the test ranges. Covenant Industries was the first company to use the new scheduling system. Covenant Industries tested its Anthem missile at the Multidomain Training Area in Morocco on August 6, 2026.

"It can take 12 to 18 months for a company that wants to go test the thing that can make a soldier’s life better, that can increase their lethality and that can keep them safer. That is not sufficient," Driscoll said. Participating firms are expected to use Internal Research and Development (IRAD) money to develop their offers. He stated that the Army does not plan to subsidize travel or other accommodations for participating companies.

"We are inviting industry to get in the mud with our soldiers, to innovate, to invest behind them. And then our commitment as an Army is we will purchase the things that will make our soldiers more lethal, more safe, and keep our country safer," he said. He added that the Army aims to break down barriers established over the last 20 or 30 years.

If you look at what Ukraine has done so incredibly well, it’s this innovation through necessity and it’s innovation at the speed that is near or close to matching the commercial sector. So what we, the Army, are trying to do is break down every single barrier that we have put up over the last 20 or 30 years," he said."

The Defense Innovation Unit said future conflicts would require the military to generate affordable long-range firepower at a scale, cost, and pace that current inventories alone cannot support. The Ground-Based Affordable Mass (G-BAM) Challenge launched in July. Maj.

Gen. Patrick Gaydon is the commanding general of Army Test and Evaluation Command. The Army will host a special electromagnetic unreliability test for industry at Camp Grayling in September.

Abby Denburg, an executive at Covenant Industries, provided details on her company's production timeline. "Covenant is preparing to begin delivering production-ready assets for our manufacturing line at the beginning of 2027 and put Anthem into the hands of the operators that need it," Denburg said.

A recent Center for Strategic and International Studies analysis found that the conflict with Iran has used up more of the U.S. military’s already diminished stockpiles of advanced interceptors such as Patriot and THAAD missiles. Mark Cancian, a senior adviser with the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), identified the drivers behind the policy change. "One is the desire to expand munitions production—particularly to bring on new kinds of munitions—and the second is Hegseth's push to accelerate the acquisition process. This is one way you can do it: by making more test facilities available, and therefore speed up the testing," Cancian said.

Why It Matters

Reducing test range access from up to 18 months to 30 days aims to accelerate the delivery of new munitions needed for future conflicts. By removing barriers established over the last few decades, the Army seeks to match commercial innovation speeds and expand production beyond current inventory limits. This shift requires companies to fund their own development and testing while promising faster procurement of weapons that enhance soldier safety and lethality.