U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) launched the first-of-its-kind multi-domain, multinational attack drone task force. The unit, called Task Force Falcon Strike, utilizes one-way attack drones of unmanned systems, CENTCOM explained.
“Task Force Falcon Strike will expand on Scorpion Strike’s success given the tremendous innovation happening among our regional allies and partners,” Adm. Brad Cooper, CENTCOM commander, said in a statement. “Integrating and deploying our new capabilities together will help us rapidly realize the new possibilities that are on the horizon.”
“The United States military has a lot of strong partnerships and friends in the region,” Cooper added. “We are collectively stronger when we integrate and deploy new capabilities together.”
The launch of the task force follows Task Force Scorpion Strike, the nation’s first dedicated one-way attack drone team in the Middle East. This task force “rapidly achieved key operational milestones, including the first-ever launch of an aerial attack drone from a U.S. Navy warship last December,” CENTCOM noted.
Last month, War Secretary Pete Hegseth issued a memo to support the drone industry. “I am rescinding restrictive policies that hindered production and limited access to these vital technologies, unleashing the combined potential of American manufacturing and warfighter ingenuity,” he said. “I am delegating authorities to procure and operate drones from the bureaucracy to our warfighters.”
Hegseth wrote that the effort will “bolster the nascent U.S. drone manufacturing base by approving hundreds of American products for purchase by our military,” “power a technological leapfrog,” and allow for the simulation of drone wars.
“Modern battlefield innovation demands a new procurement strategy that fuses manufacturers with our frontline troops,” he declared.
