US Marines forms new attack drone team to keep up with evolving drone tactics

The US Marine Corps has established the Marine Corps Attack Drone Team (MCADT) in response to the rapid proliferation of armed first-person view drone technology and tactics.

As disclosed, the creation of MCADT comes in response to the rapid proliferation of armed first-person view drone technology and tactics observed in modern conflicts, particularly in Eastern Europe.

As emerging threats continue to evolve, the Marine Corps is prioritizing the integration of FPV drone capabilities to enhance lethality and operational effectiveness across the US Fleet Marine Force.

The creation of MCADT comes in response to the rapid proliferation of armed first-person view drone technology and tactics observed in modern conflicts, particularly in Eastern Europe. As emerging threats continue to evolve, the Marine Corps is prioritizing the integration of FPV drone capabilities to enhance lethality and operational effectiveness across the Fleet Marine Force.

the team will be based at WTBn-Quantico under Training Command. Its mission will be to integrate lessons from modern combat; represent the Marine Corps in inter-service, national, and international competitions; and, through iterative training and competition, provide input to the development of FPV drone capabilities.

“Today’s battlefield is changing rapidly, and we must adapt just as quickly. The Marine Corps Attack Drone Team will ensure that our warfighters remain at the forefront of precision drone employment, providing a critical advantage in future conflicts,” Alejandro Tavizon, Weapons Training Battalion Headquarters Company commander and officer in charge of MCADT.

MCADT is already employing several USMC programs of record and non-programs of record small UAS and FPV-controlled drones, through assistance from MCWL and their dedication to the partnership to MCADT. Each of these drones offers distinct capabilities, and the MCADT will use them, as well as additional drones to be received in the coming weeks, to effectively complete their missions.

“Right now, our focus is on rapidly building proficiency by sending Marines to a variety of training courses and increasing hands-on familiarization,” said Tavizon.

“Our goal is to ensure they can not only operate these systems effectively but also integrate them seamlessly into a team. This means mastering primary platforms, having redundancy with backup systems, and getting the necessary repetitions to employ payloads with precision under real-world conditions.”

In line with its efforts to pursue adoption of novel technologies, US Marines recently partnered with Rhode Island-based developer and manufacturer of all-electric seagliders REGENT Craft to work on seaglider capabilities across missions including contested logistics and medevac/casevac.