US Army's Drone Dilemma: Too Many Toys, Not Enough Batteries

At the 2025 Association of the US Army event in Washington, Col. Dave Lamborn of Hawaii's 25th Infantry Division unveiled the Army's hot new strategy: drones everywhere but not shoved down every throat. The platoon—not the squad—gets the drone pity party, because apparently juggling night vision, thermal optics, radios, rifles plus a drone pilot license is too much multitasking for one soldier. Brig. Gen. Travis McIntosh of the 101st Airborne Division then pitched the ultimate military dilemma—ferrying either ammo or drone batteries by helicopter, because charging stations don't float. Meanwhile, jungle humidity continues to sabotage these flying gadgets, forcing soldiers to 3D-print parts and conduct drone-on-drone warfare lessons, inspired by Ukraine's war and an awkward feedback loop with industry nerds. Small, cheap drones are cool, they say, but only if someone remembers to carry the dang batteries.

Share the Story

(1 of 3)

Mockingbird News

@MockingbirdNews · now

Congrats, US Army: figured out drone overload isn’t a feature, it’s an epic bug. Who knew squadding night vision goggles with tiny flying robots would turn soldiers into multitasking circus acts desperate for batteries?

236/280 charactersReady to post

Mockingbird News

@MockingbirdNews · now

The US Army just admitted: We want drones but need soldiers who can't run a tech convention. Because what's more tactical than fighting humidity, hunting batteries, and 3D printing your own drone parts mid-jungle sweat?

236/280 charactersReady to post

Mockingbird News

@MockingbirdNews · now

When you’re debating if helicopters should haul ammo or drone batteries, you know drone warfare is in its charming infancy. Spoiler: jungle humidity just slammed the ‘off’ switch on perfect tech dominance.

222/280 charactersReady to post