US Army Kicks Off Small UAS Training Course to Close Drone Gap
In support of the Pentagon’s “Unleashing US Military Drone Dominance” program announced in July, the US Army Aviation Center of Excellence (AVCOE) has launched its first Unmanned Advanced Lethality Course at Fort Rucker.
The three-week course is designed to standardize soldier training on operating small uncrewed aerial systems (UAS) used in reconnaissance, fires, and maneuver operations, with 28 students across the army’s ground forces and aviation personnel currently participating.
As a result of the program, selected participants are expected to enhance their knowledge and establish a sustainable training program within their respective units.
“We’re helping to train the most people, the quickest, on FPV [first-person view] systems that are having a real impact on the battlefield,” said Maj. Wolf Amacker, AVCOE Directorate of Training and Doctrine UAS and Tactics Branch Chief.
Meanwhile, course director Capt. Rachel Martin described the course as Washington’s way to catch up and aggressively close that gap in drone dominance.
Unmanned Advanced Lethality Course
The course is being offered in two ways: as an in-person advanced program focused on munitions, diverse drones, and tactical employment at Fort Rucker, and as a future mobile training package for basic FPV drone skills.
At Fort Rucker, lessons begin in the classroom, utilizing commercial off-the-shelf drones and simulation software to develop FPV flight skills over 20 to 25 hours. This is followed by live flight exercises at the Military Operations on Urban Terrain site.
Aside from flight training, students also learn how to adjust fire support using drone video feeds and how to manufacture and repair drone components using 3D printing.
Meanwhile, personnel from the Maneuver and Fires Centers of Excellence are assessing how they can adapt the course into their respective domains and help operational units develop their own UAS training programs.
“Maneuver and Fires care about how SUAS helps them engage targets and keep their operators alive, while we also care about how sustainment and MI use small UAS to fulfill their responsibilities,” Amacker added.
