A U.S. soldier from the 10th Brigade Engineer Battalion pilots a first-person view drone July 23, 2025, during an exercise at Grafenwoehr Training Area in Germany. (Dylan Bailey/U.S. Army)
GRAFENWOEHR, Germany — U.S. soldiers at this vast training ground in Bavaria used a one-way attack drone in a live-fire exercise that leaders say marks a first at the company level.
The 1st Armored Brigade Combat Team crashed a homemade first-person view drone carrying C-4 plastic explosives into a simulated vehicle Tuesday to kick off a combined arms drill at the Grafenwoehr Training Area.
“There has been no other conventional U.S. Army unit to my knowledge that has done this,” said 1st Lt. Benjamin Storie, an aerial systems platoon leader with the 10th Brigade Engineer Battalion. “We’re continuing to innovate. Being on the cutting edge of lethality and warfighting is what we’re about.”
Tuesday’s exercise began with drone operators lying prone atop a hill, Storie said. They then guided the drone to the target using a device resembling a video game controller and goggles integrated with a camera mounted on the drone.
After the target blew up, the battle began. Soldiers from Assassin Company, 2nd Battalion, 7th Infantry Regiment navigated a simulated minefield and obstacles, and cleared buildings on their way to seizing two designated objectives, a northern and a southern area. They were backed by M2 Bradley Fighting Vehicles.
Sgt. Elena Killough, left, and Sgt. Demond Blach, both of the 10th Brigade Engineer Battalion, ready an armed drone for launch during an exercise at Grafenwoehr Training Area, Germany, on July 21, 2025. (Josefina Garcia/U.S. Army)
The exercise highlights the Army’s efforts to develop and integrate new technologies to keep pace with evolving battlefield conditions, such as those seen in Ukraine.
V Corps, which leads the brigade, is in the midst of force modernization and doctrine updates through initiatives dubbed Transforming in Contact and Project Flytrap.
Platoon- and company-level live-fire exercises were held Tuesday and Wednesday, as well as during a three-day stretch early last week, a V Corps statement said.
Transforming in Contact is a revamped Army fighting approach that emphasizes rapid movement, deception and adaptability. It envisions tech-savvy soldiers who can employ and counter unmanned systems on the battlefield.
Project Flytrap involves experimentation with vehicle-mounted and wearable systems designed to detect, track and jam hostile drones. It began last month at the Joint Multinational Readiness Center in Hohenfels with support from installations in Europe.
Sgt. Elena Killough of the 10th Brigade Engineer Battalion flies a first-person view drone at Grafenwoehr Training Area, Germany, on July 23, 2025. (Dylan Bailey/U.S. Army)
Sgt. Elena Killough, a drone operator from the 10th Brigade Engineer Battalion, said before the exercise Tuesday that the mercurial German weather and hilly terrain had improved the soldiers’ understanding of drone warfare immensely.
Electronic components often react to snow, rain, cold and heat, and hills or trees can cause signal loss. Lessons from the exercise will help the Army update its techniques, tactics and procedures.
“I think (drones) are going to play a huge part in making us more lethal,” Killough said. “They’re very cost-effective and very quick, easy ways to get precise engagements on targets.”
