During Exercise Salaknib at Fort Magsaysay in the Philippines, Pfc. Victor Salazar of the 2nd Battalion, 27th Infantry Regiment, 25th Infantry Division, was photographed employing a counter-UAS device integrated directly onto his M4 carbine. Fort Magsaysay is the largest military reservation in the Philippines and serves as a key training area for the Armed Forces of the Philippines. The images come from the Joint Pacific Readiness Center Exportable Exercise (JPMRC-X) instruction held on May 8, 2026, and it's a good snapshot of where small-unit C-UAS training is heading.The integration of drone-defeat capability at the individual soldier level reflects a shift that has been accelerating since the wars in Ukraine and the Middle East made it clear that UAS threats are no longer a concern reserved for specialized units. Getting that capability onto a standard M4 and into the hands of a private first class during a multinational exercise in the Indo-Pacific says something about how seriously the Army is taking the dismounted C-UAS problem. Joint Pacific Multinational Readiness Center-Exportable (JPMRC-X) brings together U.S., Philippine, and partner forces to work through realistic scenarios focused on interoperability and multi-domain tactics, and C-UAS instruction fits naturally into that framework, given the regional threat environment.Photo by Spc. Christopher Moorehead, U.S. Army.