A new competition has tested soldiers' skills and readiness to fight on modern battlefields dominated by drones.
23 teams of soldiers battled it out at the Army’s first Drone Wars competition.
Soldiers’ tactical use of drones was tested, not just their skill as pilots.
The event showcased the adoption of drones across the Army’s units.
Soldier from the Ranger Regiment flew his drone as they competed in competition with other units.
Commander from the Royal Tank Regiment viewed live first person view (FPV) feed as the pilot flew the FPV at an enemy target as they competed in competition with other units.
Trooper Harvey Chilman, Queen’s Royal Hussars (left) and trooper Darel Anderson, Household Cavalry Regiment (right) flew a first person view (FPV) drone as they competed in competition with other units
First person view pilot from the Royal Tank Regiment flew his drone to strike the enemy position as they competed in competition with other units.
23 teams from across the Army tested their drone skills against each other at the British Army’s inaugural Drone Wars competition, held at Royal Military Academy Sandhurst. The number of teams who took part - ranging from armoured units to engineers - shows the work going on across the Army to use drones.
Teams of four soldiers followed a patrol route to complete six tasks testing their ability to fly different drones on different missions.
Judged on speed and accuracy, troops had to strike a moving vehicle using a First Person View (FPV) drone; fly an FPV drone into a bunker to destroy it; interpret video from a drone being flown by someone else to hit a target with an FPV drone; find friendly troops and deliver medical supplies by drone; conduct a detailed aerial reconnaissance before an infantry assault; and locate an enemy position and call in an artillery strike.
"Drones are no longer a specialist field, and every soldier needs to be aware of how to use drones and how to defend against drones used by the enemy."
A team from the 2nd and 4th Battalions of The Ranger Regiment won the competition.
The event was run by 16 Air Assault Brigade, the Army’s lead formation for developing how to fight with and against drones.
Event organiser Major Callum Jones, of 1st Battalion The Royal Gurkha Rifles, said: “The British Army is embracing drone technology as a key element of modern soldiering. Drones are no longer a specialist field, and every soldier needs to be aware of how to use drones and how to defend against drones used by the enemy.
“The teams taking part in this event are not just from combat units, with engineers and logistics troops competing as well, and that demonstrates how broad the adoption of drones is.
“What we are testing is how soldiers use drones tactically, not how well they can fly them. As well as striking targets, soldiers are using drones to gather information to inform other actions, such as calling in artillery or launching an infantry attack. As well as a competition, this is a chance to learn from each other and share skills.”
Trooper Harvey Chilman, Queen’s Royal Hussars, flew his first person view (FPV) drone to strike the enemy position as they competed in competition with other units.
Troopers Darel Anderson and Harvey Chilman worked as a ‘hunter-killer’ pair. Tpr Anderson flew a Skydio drone to find targets, while Tpr Chilman flew an FPV drone to strike them.
Tpr Anderson, who drives an Ares armoured personnel carrier in the Household Cavalry Regiment, said: “I’ve been flying drones for two years, and we’re working hard as a unit to understand how best to use them. Drones help us see more of the battlefield, so we can strike the enemy before they get close enough to target us.
"These are basic soldiering skills that we’re using in a different way with new technology.”
“My role is to find targets and guide an FPV pilot for their drone to make the strike. You need good observation skills to interpret what the drone is seeing, and then to clearly communicate that information to other soldiers. These are basic soldiering skills that we’re using in a different way with new technology.”
Tpr Chilman crews a Challenger 2 main battle tank with the Queen’s Royal Hussars. He said: “We’re integrating drones into how we operate under armour, and it’s been interesting to operate as dismounted troops on this event.
“I was the first in my regiment to qualify as an FPV pilot and I’ve got more than 170 flying hours. I've played a lot of computer games, which helped me learn to fly drones quickly and the more hours you do the better a pilot you become. On the competition I’ve flown two strike missions and hit both targets, so it’s gone well!
“For me, there’s a similarity between flying drone missions and tank gunnery - both are about getting into the right position to line up on the target and hit it.”
“For me, there’s a similarity between flying drone missions and tank gunnery - both are about getting into the right position to line up on the target and hit it.”
Alongside the tactical competition, soldiers also took part in the Military International Drone Racing Tournament. This saw teams of troops from around the world race FPV drones around an obstacle course on Sandhurst's polo field.
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