Ukrainian drone operators delivered a punishing lesson to U.S. Army troops during a major military exercise in Germany earlier this year, exposing American vulnerabilities to the rapidly evolving technology that has transformed modern warfare.
During the Combined Resolve exercise in April and May, Ukrainian drone units easily located and defeated U.S. troops and armored vehicles rotating from Fort Hood, Texas, according to people familiar with the exercise.
Around 3,500 U.S. personnel, primarily from the 3rd Armored Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, participated in the semiannual exercise focused on large-scale ground combat.
Their mission was to attack a position defended by the training ground’s opposition force, which was reinforced by Ukrainian troops from the 412th Regiment of Unmanned Systems Forces, known as Nemesis.
The result was a lopsided defeat.
Ukrainian drone operators effectively eliminated an entire U.S. armored brigade during the simulated fighting, according to U.S. officials briefed on the exercise and one participant.
American forces entered the battlefield using heavy armored vehicles that kicked up clouds of dust, making them easy targets for Ukrainian reconnaissance drones. Once located, the vehicles were pursued by drones dropping explosives and first-person-view drones designed to smash directly into targets during actual combat.
Because live ammunition is rarely used during exercises, drones generally hovered over vehicles or moved close enough for observers to declare a simulated “kill.”
The Ukrainians were eliminating American vehicles so quickly that U.S. forces had to be “re-spawned” and sent back into the exercise as new units just to keep the drill going, according to a U.S. official.
The Americans did improve as the two-week engagement continued. Troops became better at dispersing, concealing their positions and using electronic warfare, an Army official said.
The Ukrainian forces later switched sides and helped the Americans employ drone technology offensively, which the U.S. troops used effectively.
The exercise highlighted the experience Ukrainian forces have accumulated during nearly 4½ years of fighting Russia. Ukrainian operators and support troops have become skilled at repairing and adapting drones under battlefield conditions, while American operators lack comparable experience fixing and arming drones while under fire.
“It is vital that the U.S. military master that, and thus far, unfortunately, that does not seem to be the case,” Center for Strategic and International Studies scholar Eliot Cohen said.
The Pentagon has spent billions on drone and counterdrone technology, while the Army has established specialized units to operate the systems. The U.S. has also struggled against Iranian long-range drones in the Middle East this year, where drones have killed and injured soldiers and destroyed aircraft.
The Trump administration has meanwhile turned to Ukraine for expertise. The U.S. is testing Ukrainian drones for possible purchases and has deployed counterdrone systems tested during the Ukraine war to help protect American forces in Iran.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told senators in May that he had increased the number of U.S. personnel being sent to Ukraine to study drone warfare.
The Americans are not alone in being outmatched during training exercises. Ukrainian drone operators have also outperformed British, Estonian, Swedish and other NATO forces in recent exercises.
