Are Rival Countries Closing the Gap with U.S. Special Forces?

By Charlie Gao,The National Interest

One of the Special Operations Forces (SOF) truths is “Humans are more important than Hardware.” However, throughout most of the global war on terror, American SOF have gone to war with some of the most technologically advanced hardware on the planet. As other nations also begin to invest and utilize their SOF, is the technological edge of American SOF being dulled?

Perhaps the greatest advance in the technology used to support SOF during GWOT was the use of Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) for Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (ISR). The United States fielded hundreds of MQ-1 Predators and MQ-9 Reapers in support of SOF (as well as conventional operations). These “eyes in the sky” allowed the United States to track and survey targets at almost any hour of the day, via the advanced thermal- and night-vision cameras on the nose of these aircraft. Russia has fielded UAS in Syria as well, though it’s unsure how many are relegated to support of SOF operations. Reports suggest that Russian UAS in Syria are primarily used for spot and adjust for artillery, although intelligence gathered on such flights could be used to support Russian SOF as well.

As for the drones themselves, Russian forces appear to be using the Orlan-10 and Forpost UAS. The Forpost, a version of Israel’s IAI Searcher Mk. II, is a rough analog to the MQ-1 Predator, housing a camera ball and featuring similar weight, range, and endurance characteristics. However, it cannot be armed, limiting its role in providing immediate direct fire against targets. The Orlan-10 is far lighter, weighing only fifteen kilograms. It too has a stabilized camera ball, which includes thermal imagers, but the capabilities of this ball are likely less than that on heavier UAVs. The heavy use of the lighter Orlan-10 (including footage published from them in official media) is likely due to Russian preference to test their own domestic equipment, as well as the low cost of these light UAVs.

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China is even further ahead than Russia on this front. They field and export the Wing Loong series of UAS, which can be considered practically direct clones of the MQ-1 Predator, sharing the same bulbous nose, V tail, and importantly, armed strike capability. These UAS have been proven in combat, and have seen multiple successful export contracts. While Chinese doctrine regarding their SOF is rather opaque, it’s highly likely that these UAS would support Chinese SOF on the battlefield.