Tiny Drones Are Built for Suicide Missions Against 'High-Value' Targets Fighting umpteen wars around the world, the US special forces (SOCOM) is forever offering “urgent operational needs statements” for its various weapons. This newest one is a real eye-opener, as SOCOM is seeking 325 more Lethal Miniature Aerial Missile Systems (LMAMS).
LMAMS are not actually missiles so much as single-use drones, designed to be small, fast, and carry large explosive payloads. The drones are created with an eye toward assassination attacks against “high-value targets,” with US company AeroVironment, and some Israeli companies manufacturing various similar models.
That SOCOM is open to using mini-drones on “kamikaze” missions to assassinate people isn’t the big story here, but rather that they believe they “urgently” need another 325 of them, as AeroVironment had very recently delivered 350 such drones to them already.
This suggests that SOCOM has either already burned through 350 assassination drones in a disturbingly short time, or they plan on assassinating so many people in the near future that they don’t think what they have left is enough to cover it until they could order more through conventional channels. Either is a concerning sign, as the US has a questionable history of selecting targets for drone killings.