Today’s wars cannot be understood without drones. Aware of this, the U.S. Army created a unit based in Europe last November dedicated to studying and mastering the use of this weaponry. The idea was to draw lessons from what is happening in Ukraine, where unmanned vehicles have completely transformed the battlefield. Once their training was completed, the group, named the Unmanned Assault Battalion, had to be capable of deploying anywhere the use of drones was required.
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But the experiment has lasted little: this week it was revealed that the acting Chief of Staff of the Army, General Christopher LaNeve, has ordered the dismantling of the unit, which will return to being a traditional infantry battalion.
According to a statement from the Army itself, before disbanding, the unit will participate in two exercises in Germany and then deliver “what was learned there, along with last year’s findings, to serve as a basis for the design of the armed forces and future experimentation.”
According to The Wall Street Journal, the outlet that broke the news, LaNeve’s order follows the “back to basics” approach adopted by the Donald Trump Administration. Under this vision, the U.S. armed forces are replacing advanced technologies with older systems. An example of this would be Trump’s demand to replace the cutting-edge electromagnetic aircraft launch system, known as EMALS, on new aircraft carriers with steam-powered catapults. A technology that is not only more outdated but also requires more maintenance and personnel.
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Officials consulted by CBS suggest that behind LaNeve’s decision there is also a settling of scores. These sources maintain that the general had a very tense relationship with two of the former top commanders who promoted the creation of the unit: former Chief of Staff Randy George and former commander of the U.S. Army in Europe and Africa, Christopher Donahue. Both had risen to their positions during Joe Biden’s presidency and were later removed in bad terms with Trump’s arrival. Their departure paved the way for LaNeve’s promotion to head of the Chief of Staff, a position the general seemed destined for due to his close relationship with the current Secretary of Defense, Peter Hegseth, who has protected the military officer since arriving at the Pentagon.
Last Wednesday, LaNeve outlined his vision for the armed forces in a memorandum titled The Army’s Azimuth. It argues that “the next war will not resemble the previous one,” and that soldiers need to “learn, innovate, and adapt faster” by combining human judgment with “advanced technologies such as autonomy and artificial intelligence.” “My approach is simple and has not changed: this army must fight and win today,” states the general, who does not mention drones even once in his text.
Inevitably, the news of the unit’s dismantling has stirred up dust: no one can see the logic in this decision. Even more so considering that the Iran war has highlighted the U.S.’s inability to effectively counter attacks with this type of weaponry. Iranian drones have not only caused serious damage to Washington’s allies in the Middle East but also to U.S. troops deployed in the region. It is enough to recall what happened last July in Jordan, when an Iranian attack with Shahed devices and ballistic missiles took the lives of two American soldiers.
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