Hostile guerrilla forces infiltrate during a ground combat situation.

Friendly forces engage in close-quarters firefights with the enemy to protect defensive facilities, but struggle to keep up with the response.

At a moment of crisis, small unmanned aerial vehicles (drones) come to the support of the friendly forces.

A member hiding behind cover launches a reconnaissance drone first.

Once the reconnaissance aircraft rising into the sky accurately identifies the position and coordinates of the hidden enemy, a second drone tasked with a suicide attack immediately flies in.

The strike drone descends to about 2 meters above the target to neutralize the enemy guerrilla forces.

On the 2nd, the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force (JGSDF) unveiled guerrilla suppression training utilizing the small attack unmanned aerial vehicle Drone40 at the Ojojihara Maneuver Area in Miyagi Prefecture to the press.

This is part of the joint field training exercise "Brunet-Takamori 26" between the JGSDF and the French Army, which began on the 25th of last month.

The training on this day was conducted under the scenario of "responding to an attack on critical protective facilities accompanied by enemy unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), and searching for and suppressing enemy guerrillas who are hiding and withdrawing."

This is the first time that the Drone40 has been deployed in a joint exercise between the Self-Defense Forces and a foreign military.

The Drone40 is a small attack drone developed by Australian defense company DefendTex.

According to information on the DefendTex website, it features a quadcopter design and can be launched manually or via a 40mm grenade launcher depending on the situation.

Multiple units can be launched simultaneously to conduct mass attacks on targets and neutralize defense systems, and automated flight is also possible.

Its maximum operational range is 35 km, and its top speed is approximately 65 km/h.

The Japan Acquisition, Technology & Logistics Agency (ATLA) held an open bidding process for the Self-Defense Forces' first attack drones and selected the Drone40 as the winning model in February.

However, at the media disclosure site on this day, a mechanical failure (trouble) occurred during the exercise, preventing the drones from being launched during the joint simulated combat. Instead, a separate demonstration to attack guerrillas by launching the aircraft was held immediately after the main training.

Two drones rose in succession, and while the first aircraft conducted reconnaissance from the sky, the second strike aircraft descended to attack the guerrillas.

Instead of an actual explosion, the flashing of an equipped lamp signaled the neutralization of the target.

A Self-Defense Force official stated that the aircraft demonstrated on this day were for demonstration and verification purposes, and are in the stage of force-readiness verification.

However, the cause of the malfunction, specific specifications, and unit price were not disclosed citing military security.

According to Japanese media, Marubeni Aerospace participated alone in the bidding for the Self-Defense Forces' attack drones with the Drone40 and won the contract for approximately 3.68016 billion yen (approx. 31.5 billion won).

The procurement scale is about 310 units, and the delivery deadline is by the end of May 2027, Japanese media reported.

The Self-Defense Forces plan to deploy this equipment sequentially, centered around infantry (ordinary course) units.

Following the training on this day, the Ground Self-Defense Force explained, "It will be operated for the purpose of searching and identifying vehicle or personnel targets from the air and rapidly striking them," adding, "Sequential deployment to units is scheduled starting from fiscal 2027."

Recently, Japan has been accelerating the expansion of its drone forces to strengthen its defense capabilities.

This is because low-cost, high-efficiency small attack drones have emerged as a core force changing the landscape of the battlefield through conflicts such as the Russia-Ukraine war.

While the Japanese government is pushing to revise its three security documents within the year, the Ministry of Defense is known to have included policies in the National Security Strategy and the Defense Buildup Program—two of the three documents—to introduce long-range attack drones to improve counterstrike capabilities.

To cope with enemy suicide drones, the plan is to procure large quantities of interceptor drones that are cheaper than air defense missiles to enhance sustained combat capability.

Cooperation in the private sector is also becoming visible.

Japanese media outlets have reported that Japan's Rakuten Group supplies attack drones produced by a German defense startup to the Ground Self-Defense Force and even plans to pursue domestic production afterward.

Rakuten Group was reported to plan to support the delivery of drones made by Germany's Helsing—capable of shooting down missiles—to the Ground Self-Defense Force, while also keeping mass production of Helsing drones in Japan in mind for the future.

(Photo: Yonhap News)