It is used by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) for hurricane tracking,[1] and is being assessed by the United States Air Force and Army as an intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance asset, as well as for delivering explosive missiles.

[9] In July 2018, Raytheon announced the Army had awarded it a contract to deliver the Coyote for C-UAS missions, with deliveries starting by the end of the year.

The Coyote Block 1B is equipped with a radio-frequency seeker and proximity warhead working in conjunction with Raytheon’s Ku band radio frequency system (KuRFS) radar to intercept Class I and II drones;[10][11][12] the KuRFS can detect Class I UAS out to 9.9 mi (16 km)[8] and can even detect objects as small as a 9 mm bullet.

[13] In June 2019, the Coyote-KRFS radar system, dubbed Howler C-UAS, achieved Initial Operational Capability with the U.S. Army after just 17 months of development.

[14] Raytheon then developed a Block 2 variant equipped with a jet engine, improving speed and loiter time to engage larger and further targets.

[8][15][16] On 17 March 2020, Raytheon was cleared to sell the Coyote Block 2 interceptor as part of the Howler system after entering U.S. military service.

[20] In November 2022, the U.S. approved the sale of 10 Fixed Site-Low, Slow, Small UAV Integrated Defeat Systems (FS-LIDS) to Qatar in a $1 billion deal.

[27] In December 2023, the U.S. Army disclosed plans to purchase 6,700 Coyote interceptors from 2025-2029 for the Mobile-Low, Slow, Small Unmanned Aircraft Integrated Defeat System (M-LIDS) and FS-LIDS, as well as associated launch platforms and radars.