US Army Developing Man-Portable Tank-Killing Kamikaze Drone
The US Army is developing a new tank-killing loitering munition to equip its infantry brigade combat teams (IBCT).
The Low Altitude Stalking and Strike Ordnance (LASSO) program is an urgent capability acquisition effort of the Program Executive Office Soldier, a US Army organization responsible for rapid prototyping, procurement, and fielding of equipment.
Low Altitude Stalking and Strike Ordnance
The man-portable system consists of a launch tube, drone, and fire control station, including “electrical optical/infrared sensor, precision flight control, and the ability to fly, track and engage non-line-of-sight targets and armored vehicles with precision lethal fires,” Program Executive Office Soldier explained in a statement.
“We’re really excited to partner with the industry and bring this capability to our IBCTs,” LASSO assistant product manager Maj. John Dibble said.
“This anti-tank capability is a key contributor to our efforts to increase the lethality of the Army of 2030s IBCT and maintain overmatch against our near-peer threats.”
Other Loitering Munition Efforts
Meanwhile, the US Army last month sought industry proposals to arm its existing drones with lethal explosives.
The proposal is in response to the Ukraine war, in which loitering munitions have proved their effectiveness.
The US Army currently lacks loitering munitions in its inventory, with only the special forces operating a range of small unmanned aerial systems, including the Switchblade kamikaze drone.
