US Army V Corps announced that US Army drone operators flew first-person-view aircraft during a joint counter-drone training exercise at Bemowo Piskie Training Area in Poland on August 18, 2026. The training exercise allowed Romanian military crews to practice tracking the unmanned aerial vehicles using a Flakpanzer Gepard anti-aircraft gun system.
According to US Army V Corps, the unmanned aircraft used during the exercise were operated by the strike section of Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 2nd Battalion, 37th Armored Regiment. Military officials did not publicly identify the specific drone model or disclose the exact number of aircraft flown during the drill. The Gepard anti-aircraft gun system utilizes search and tracking radars alongside optical targeting sights.
The Romanian unit stationed in Poland is the Iron Cheetahs air defense detachment, designated as GBAD XIX and generated by the 348th Battalion. The detachment operates as part of the NATO Forward Land Forces Battle Group-Poland, which is currently commanded by Lieutenant Colonel Steven Saxion, who also serves as the commander of the US battalion.
The Gepard is a radar-directed anti-aircraft gun system originally developed in the 1960s to engage low-flying aircraft and entered West German service during the 1970s. Built on a Leopard 1 tank chassis, the vehicle is armed with twin 35 mm Oerlikon automatic cannons. Germany retired its own Gepard fleet in 2010, and the system is no longer in active production, leaving Romania among the few NATO allies still operating the vehicle type.
In addition to ground-based air defense training, NATO combat aircraft have engaged unmanned aerial threats on multiple occasions throughout 2026. A Romanian Air Force F-16 fighter jet intercepted and neutralized a maritime drone using a gun pass over the Black Sea on August 20, 2026.
