[TWZ] The command overseeing U.S. special operations forces in the Middle East wants to buy an unspecified number of first-person view (FPV) drones and associated training to help Green Berets clear caves. U.S. Special Operations Command Central (SOCCENT) is seeking these weapons to augment the use of military working dogs (MWDs) because it considers drones safer and more effective. The concern is of increasing relevance as Hamas, Hezbollah, the Houthis and Iran have all utilized caves, tunnels and other underground facilities as attack vectors, weapons and personnel hiding facilities and command and control nodes.
"Currently, the absence of dedicated unmanned aerial systems (UAS) for cave clearing operations forces reliance on Military Working Dogs (MWD) or partner forces, significantly increasing risk to both personnel and mission success," U.S. Special Operations Command (SOCOM) wrote in a request for a single-source FPV drone contract for SOCCENT posted on the SAM.gov U.S. purchasing portal. "Caves present confined, complex spaces with limited visibility and unpredictable terrain, increasing the danger to personnel and potentially hindering MWD effectiveness." |