Ukrainian Troops Embed With US Army in Germany to Sharpen Drone Warfare

A US soldier stood on a dusty road in Germany, adjusting a controller. Moments later, a drone with wings nearly the span of his outstretched arms lifted off and climbed into the sky.

The scene unfolded during a US Army training exercise in the Bavarian foothills, part of an effort to test tactics and equipment drawn from Ukraine's battlefield experience. More than four and a half years into the war with Russia, Kyiv's forces have become pioneers in drone combat, and American units are looking to absorb those lessons.

The annual drills, held over several weeks, have become a showcase for how closely US and Ukrainian forces now work together. Brig. Gen. Terry Tillis, who leads the Germany-based training unit, said the Army now has 1,900 drones on hand, describing them as reflecting "the latest things that we've learned from Ukrainian efforts in this war."

About a dozen Ukrainian military personnel travelled to Germany for this year's exercise. According to the US Army, they are advising on electronic warfare, drone operations and lessons from ongoing combat. Some soldiers from the 173rd Airborne Brigade, which heads the US contingent, were sent to Ukraine earlier in the year to learn directly from a country that has been at the cutting edge of drone warfare since Russia's full-scale invasion in February 2022.

Tillis said the Ukrainians are embedded with US troops, helping to advise, assist and then employ the technology. The urgency has grown as Washington seeks ways to counter Iranian drone attacks in a separate conflict now more than six months old.

The results have been visible in the exercise itself. Anthony Miller, the Army's chief technology officer, told reporters that roughly half of the 173rd Airborne Brigade's engagements with opposing forces "were drone contact first." He said he has discouraged centralising drone expertise in a single unit, arguing that doing so would limit the Army's ability to spread what it learns. Miller pointed to the brigade's performance as evidence that distributing drone integration across formations was the right approach.

An Army official, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss internal deliberations, said there is broad agreement on the need to bring drones into the ranks, but leaders have yet to settle how ground forces should be structured for a battlefield where drones are everywhere. Units are integrating one-way attack drones down to company level, the official said, but more is needed than simply "adding drones to an infantry battalion."

The collaboration has unfolded against a backdrop of turnover among senior leaders who had championed drone experimentation. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth removed Gen. Randy George, the Army's top uniformed officer, in April and replaced him with Gen. Christopher LaNeve. Army Secretary Dan Driscoll, a George ally, left early this month. President Donald Trump has named Adam Telle, a civilian leader in the Army Corps of Engineers, as acting Army secretary.

Weeks before Driscoll's departure, LaNeve ordered a unit within the 173rd Airborne Brigade that had been experimenting with drone warfare to end its work and return to a traditional infantry role after nearly a year. The Army has said the move was always part of the plan, though expectations under the previous leadership were that the battalion would continue.

The Army official said neither the specialised battalion nor the exchanges with Ukrainians are meant to replicate Ukraine's model, but rather to help the Army envision how the US would field its own formations. With more resources, the official noted, the Ukrainians would use drones differently.

Ukraine established a separate Unmanned Systems Forces branch two years ago, yet drones are now so deeply woven into its military that few units operate without them, from reconnaissance to strikes, with artillery and other traditional weapons often working alongside drones overhead.