Royal Marines seek “battlefield advantage” when first training with swarms of drones in the UK | News from the UK

In a first for the British Armed Forces, the Royal Marines used swarms of drones to assist with combat exercises.

Autonomous machines were present in the air, at sea and underwater to aid soldiers in simulated attacks on missile and radar installations across the UK.

The experimenter was quick to say the point was not to get rid of the Marines themselves, but to improve their performance.

“We must always remember that this technology is there to improve the excellence of the command, not to replace it,” said Colonel Chris Haw, the officer in charge of the experiments.

The exercises were conducted in the Electronic Warfare Tactics facility at RAF Spadeadam in. carried out Cumbria, and at Lulworth Cove in Dorset.

The experiments with the name “Autonomous Advance Force 4.0” were designed to create a combined force of man and machine in order to give the commandos a “battlefield advantage”.

A marine The spokesman said: “As a first for the British Defense, a group of six medium-duty elevator drones operated in an autonomously controlled swarm from a single ground control station.

“The task of the drones was to tactically supply commandos with everything from ammunition for the attacking troops to blood for paramedics.”

They continued, “The swarm also showed considerable flexibility, switching roles to conduct reconnaissance missions to provide information for command strikes on land and at sea against an enemy target when launched from RFA Mounts Bay.”

“The autonomous systems also worked together and were tasked independently to find and identify enemy targets, making precise use of their range of increasingly powerful sensors and targeting algorithms,” the spokesman said.

“The ultimate goal is to seamlessly embed autonomous systems in the front line to support commandos on the battlefield.

“These experiments question tactics and develop knowledge of how the drones can and cannot be used.”

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First Admiral of the Sea, Sir Tony Radakin, said: “Only by continuously experimenting with the latest technology and innovation can we properly prepare our people for the challenges of the future.”