"Ukrainian drone attack wipes out U.S. armored brigade in an instant"

[Financial News] "A U.S. armored regiment was wiped out in an instant by Ukrainian drone attacks."
The result came from a joint Combined Resolve exercise that the U.S. military and Ukrainian forces conduct twice a year at a military training ground in Germany in April and May.
The U.S. military was on the offensive, attacking the opposing position. About 3,500 troops from the 3rd Armored Brigade of the 1st Cavalry Division, which is rotationally deployed to Germany, took part. Backed by helicopters and drones, tank units equipped with electronic warfare and anti-drone systems moved forward.
The opposing force, or OPFOR, was Ukraine. The core of the defense was made up of drone operators from the 412th Unmanned Systems Brigade, known as Nemesis.
As the mock battle began, the U.S. military's heavily armored tanks kicked up dust as they charged toward enemy lines. They were quickly detected by Ukrainian reconnaissance drones. Attack drones then dropped bombs, and suicide drones joined in.
If a drone is hovering overhead or comes close, the tank is considered 'killed.' But the tanks were being spotted so quickly by drones that vehicles marked as destroyed had to be sent back into the exercise in a kind of respawn.
Reporting on the exercise, WSJ noted on the 12th local time that it showed "the U.S. armored force may struggle to protect itself from drone attacks while on the move."
The U.S. Department of Defense has spent billions of dollars on drone and counter-drone technology. It has also created special units to operate them. Still, WSJ reported that the military remained vulnerable to drone attacks.
Eliot A. Cohen of the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), a U.S. think tank, said the exercise underscored how essential drones are in modern warfare. He added, "It is extremely important for the U.S. military to become proficient at this, but unfortunately, that does not seem to be the case so far."
U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said in the United States Senate in May that the number of American personnel sent to Ukraine to study drone warfare had been increased. WSJ also reported that the United States is seeking to purchase drones made in Ukraine.
The U.S. military is not the only force that has been overrun by Ukraine's drone units. In a drill held in the Baltic Sea in May last year, Ukraine's drone unit easily defeated British, Estonian, and other North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) troops.
This spring as well, Ukraine's drone unit reportedly overwhelmed troops from other countries during an exercise conducted by the Swedish military with NATO allies.

[email protected] Lee Seok-woo, international affairs Reporter