US CENTCOM launches first-ever multinational attack drone task force
Tampa (US) Aug 14 (IANS) US Central Command (CENTCOM) on Thursday announced that it’s going to establish the first-ever multi-domain, multinational attack drone task force.
According to a statement by CENTCOM on X, the unit will be called Task Force Falcon Strike and will employ one-way attack drones consisting of unmanned systems from above, on, and below the sea, operated by military support staff from the United States and regional partners.
It said that the Falcon Strike’s launch occurs nine months after CENTCOM established Task Force Scorpion Strike, the US military’s first dedicated one-way attack drone squadron in the Middle East.
“Scorpion Strike rapidly achieved key operational milestones, including the first-ever launch of an aerial attack drone from a US Navy warship last December. The squadron also employed one-way unmanned aerial systems during Operation Epic Fury and during strikes on Iranian port facilities in July using unmanned attack vessels at sea,” noted the statement.
“Task Force Falcon Strike will expand on Scorpion Strike’s success given the tremendous innovation happening among our regional allies and partners,” said Adm. Brad Cooper, CENTCOM commander. “Integrating and deploying our new capabilities together will help us rapidly realise the new possibilities that are on the horizon.”
The statement said that CENTCOM has initiated the process of consulting with and officially inviting regional partners.
“As regional partners formally join, Task Force Falcon Strike will scale attack drone capabilities across the Middle East into a unified multi-domain, multinational deterrent,” it emphasised.
“The United States military has a lot of strong partnerships and friends in the region,” said Cooper. “We are collectively stronger when we integrate and deploy new capabilities together.”
According to the statement, the personnel from US Special Operations Command Central (SOCCENT), which launched Scorpion Strike, will lead Falcon Strike’s staff of US and regional representatives.
Headquartered at MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa, SOCCENT plans and conducts special operations across CENTCOM’s 21-country area of responsibility in the Middle East, Central Asia, and South Asia.
–IANS
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