The U.S. Army launched a new online portal designed to cut industry wait times for live testing of defense technologies from 12 to 18 months to a 30-day access standard, Army officials announced Friday.
The initiative, called Test Range Army, gives commercial companies a single entry point to request access to military test ranges for research, development, and rapid experimentation.
During a media briefing, Army leaders told reporters the effort is intended to accelerate innovation by making specialized testing environments more accessible to companies of all sizes, including startups without existing government contracts.
Companies can submit requests through TestRange.army.mil, which Army officials described as a digital “front door” for industry. Companies do not need an existing U.S. government contract or prior federal relationship to request access, and each applicant will be assigned a dedicated concierge to help navigate scheduling and identify an appropriate range.
“We have created this new portal that should look very similar to when you go out in the consumer sector and want to book a thing,” Army Secretary Dan Driscoll said. “We have made it a literal concierge-esque experience, where each company will get one human being that will help them through the process, that will get them to the range and ensure that it is successful.”
“This should be an easy-to-use experience that is as interchangeable with every website you access in your regular life, with the calendaring features, with the booking features that the rest of the industry uses,” Driscoll added.
Participating locations include Dugway Proving Ground in Utah; West Cibola Range, a newly opened component of Yuma Proving Ground in Arizona; Camp Shelby Joint Forces Training Center in Mississippi; Camp Grayling Joint Maneuver Training Center in Michigan; and the Multidomain Training Area range complex, a component of the Africa Multidomain Training and Experimentation Center in Morocco.
The effort is being led by the U.S. Army Test and Evaluation Command in partnership with the Mississippi and Michigan National Guard and U.S. Africa Command. Officials said the initiative prioritizes commercial access to environments suited for testing drones, counter-drone technologies, long-range fires, and low-cost interceptors.
Driscoll said the Army ultimately wants to generate enough industry demand to keep participating ranges operating as many as three shifts per day.
“This is good government. This is states working with the federal government across political parties to break down barriers,” Driscoll said.
The 30-day standard does not guarantee companies their preferred range or testing date. Capacity and other constraints may affect availability, with the concierge team working with applicants to identify suitable locations and schedules.
Covenant serves as first Test Range Army pathfinder
Covenant Industries became the first company to serve as a “pathfinder” through the new process, completing a flight test of its Anthem missile in Morocco.
“Together, we demonstrated not only the performance of the Anthem missile, but also a repeatable pathway now available to every company through TestRange.army.mil,” Covenant Industries President Abby Denburg said.
Driscoll said Covenant completed the process in 13 days, after the Army asked the company on short notice whether it could transport its missile to Morocco and prepare for the test.
Denburg said Anthem has undergone a developmental flight-test campaign that included a successful live-fire demonstration at Project Convergence in July and the latest test in Morocco.
“Together, these efforts continue to validate the maturity of Anthem in representative military environments and support the transition towards fielding,” she said.
Covenant plans to begin delivering production-ready systems from its manufacturing line in early 2027, Denburg said.
When asked whether Covenant’s testing had resulted in an Army contract, officials on the podium said they could not answer.
Denburg said access to realistic military testing environments remains a significant challenge for emerging defense companies as they work to move technologies from development toward operational use.
“For emerging defense companies, one of the greatest challenges is bridging the gap between promising technology and an operational capability,” Denburg said. “Modeling and simulation are important, but they can’t replace the engineering knowledge gained from flying real hardware. Every flight validates assumptions and uncovers opportunities for improvement.”