Army to phase out drone battalion created to learn lessons from Ukraine war

Published August 21, 2026 1:36pm ET | Updated August 21, 2026 1:36pm ET



The Army has decided to phase out a drone battalion that was set up to learn lessons from the Russia-Ukraine war, where both sides are at the forefront of autonomous military equipment and technology.

This unit, known as the Unmanned Assault Battalion, will “soon refocus on its core warfighting tasks as an airborne battalion assigned to a mobile brigade combat team,” an Army official told the Washington Examiner. The battalion is a part of the 173rd Airborne Brigade.

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