Autonomous Long-Range Integrated Surveillance Towers deployed in Texas under multi-year $1.8 billion contract
FORT WORTH, TEXAS – SEPT. 11, 2025 – The Del Rio Area of Responsibility (AoR) is difficult Texas terrain. It’s nestled near the Rio Grande River, along the United States’ southern border. The area is sparsely populated and has traditionally served as a transnational smuggling corridor often exploited by the criminal element. To address the challenges of securing this expanse of borderland, the United States Customs and Border Protection (CBP) contracted Elbit Systems of America (Elbit America) to deploy autonomous long-range Integrated Surveillance Towers (ISTs) there. The deployment of additional ISTs along the border began in July 2025 and will continue through September 2029. The work is funded under a $1.8 billion Indefinite Delivery/Indefinite Quantity contract the company won in 2023.
Strategically installed throughout the Del Rio AoR, each IST is equipped with multiple Artificial Intelligence-enabled sensors to detect, identify, and track items of interest. The ISTs don’t require CBP agents to manually monitor radar tracks and video 24/7, significantly reducing staffing requirements.
“Elbit America’s Integrated Surveillance Towers provide total situational awareness, even when agents may be physically miles away from the border,” said Guy Landau, the company’s Senior Vice President and General Manager of the Integrated Solutions Division. “Our ISTs operate autonomously, and efficiently, each securing a 100-square-mile surveillance area.”
Elbit America President and CEO Luke Savoie said, “Partnered with the CBP and the Department of Homeland Security, we’ve learned the unique challenges agents face, and we’ve developed a mix of solutions to make their work safer and more automated. Team Elbit America is proud to help provide the overmatch capability agents need at our nation’s borders.”
Learn more: https://nextgenborder.com/