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The U.S. Marine Corps established an attack drone team earlier this year to respond to the rapid development of armed first-person view (FPV) drone technology and tactics, offering a glimpse into the evolving landscape of modern warfare and how future battles could be fought.
The Marine Corps Attack Drone Team (MCADT) will be based at the Weapons Training Battalion, Marine Corps Base in Quantico, Virginia.
The FPV drones used will offer squad-level lethality at a range of up to 20 kilometers, nearly 12.5 miles, for under $5,000, compared to more expensive weapons systems with less capability, according to a press release from the service.
The Marine Corps Attack Drone Team utilized the Skydio X2D drone as a reconnaissance drone on the range to showcase its capabilities on the battlefield. ((DVIDS / U.S. Marine Corps photo by Cpl. Joshua Barker))
“MCADT is committed to rapidly integrating armed first-person view drones into the FMF [Fleet Marine Force], enhancing small-unit lethality and providing organic capabilities that warfighters currently lack,” said Maj. Alejandro Tavizon, the headquarters company commander at Weapons Training Battalion and officer in charge of MCADT.
“By leveraging emerging technologies and refining drone employment tactics, we are ensuring that Marines remain agile, adaptive, and lethal in the modern battlespace.”
Brett Velicovich, an Army veteran with extensive drone experience, told Fox News Digital that the creation of MCADT has been long overdue as the United States enters a drone arms race with adversaries like China, Russia and Iran.
A Neros Archer first-person view drone sits on a case during a demonstration range at Weapons Training Battalion on Marine Corps Base Quantico, Virginia, March 7, 2025. ((DVIDS / U.S. Marine Corps photo by Cpl. Joshua Barker))
“For a while now, we haven’t had the needed technology, the needed expertise in low-cost, highly scalable, lethal drone technology that, frankly, is going to be the next part of every piece of the next war that we fight,” he said.
Velicovich argued that the United States is far behind other countries, especially China, when it comes to the production of drone technology, and needs to start looking at drones not just as surveillance assets, but as a form of ammunition.
He pointed to Russia’s war in Ukraine and the large-scale advancements in domestic drone production that have allowed Ukrainian forces to strike multi-million-dollar enemy tanks and vehicles with drones that cost a few hundred dollars.
KYIV, UKRAINE – 2025/04/01: A batch of fibre optic controlled First Person View (FPV) drones are seen before being handed over to the Ukrainian armed forces. FPV drones equipped with fiber optics offer key advantages over traditional UAVs. (Photo by Mykhaylo Palinchak/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images))
Ukrainian Defense Minister Rustem Umerov announced in December that Ukraine manufactured over 1.5 million FPV drones in 2024, including reconnaissance, kamikaze and long-range deep-strike drones. Domestically produced drones accounted for 96.2% of all unmanned aerial vehicles used by Ukrainian forces during the year.
“You have companies and manufacturing plants in Ukraine building 100,000 drones per month. One manufacturing plant is building 100,000 of these things per month. That’s real scale. That’s where we need to be,” Velicovich told Fox News Digital.
The WSJ, citing one Department of Defense estimate, reported that the U.S. has the capacity to build up to 100,000 drones a year.
A Marine pilots a first-person view drone during a demonstration range at WTBn on Marine Corps Base Quantico, Virginia, March 7, 2025. ((DVIDS / U.S. Marine Corps photo by Cpl. Joshua Barker / Fox News Digital))
Singleton added that the U.S. doesn’t need to match China drone for drone, but it needs a production floor that’s sustainable, somewhere around a minimum of 250,000 drones per year.
“We are absolutely in a drone arms race with China — and losing isn’t an option. Success will depend on scaling production, protecting sensitive supply chains, and turbocharging innovation,” he said. “It’s not just about building drones — it’s about fielding smarter, cheaper and more resilient swarms faster than Beijing.”
DJI drones on display. ((Costfoto/NurPhoto via Getty Images) | (CFOTO/Future Publishing via Getty Images) / Fox News Digital)
The U.S. National Drone Association will host the Military Drone Crucible Championship in Florida later this summer, where the Marines and the Army’s 75th Ranger Regiment will compete to demonstrate their drone skills and tactics in modern combat.
