Green Berets have been testing glider drones that can slip undetected past enemy electronic sensors

US forces face the challenge of resupplying and communicating without revealing positions through electronic emissions. Glider drones are presented as an alternative for moving construction materials, food, and medical supplies when roads, rivers, or railways are unavailable or aircraft cannot land. During an international special operations exercise in Romania and Macedonia, Romanian aircraft released Grasshopper glider drones carrying small US troop loads. The drones can land within about 10 meters of a target area by deploying a parachute before a controlled nose-first impact. The system uses limited electronic activity to remain below electromagnetic detection thresholds. It is described as expendable and purpose-built for contested and denied environments, with variants able to carry up to 500 pounds of cargo.

"As the US military grapples with the challenge of moving, communicating, and resupplying forces without giving away their positions through electronic emissions, glider drones are emerging as a potential option, a Special Operations Command Europe logistics official told Business Insider this week at the annual SOF Week conference in Tampa, Florida."

"During Trojan Footprint, a major international special operations exercise that was held this month in Romania and Macedonia, Romanian aircraft carrying a handful of US troops released two Grasshopper glider drones loaded with construction materials, food, and medical supplies in support of American Green Berets on the ground."

"Able to land within 10 meters of its intended target area, it deploys a parachute just before making a controlled nose-first impact. The Grasshopper drone manufactured by Dzyne requires only limited electronic activity; the official said that it can remain below detection thresholds in the electromagnetic spectrum, a growing concern for the US military."

"Electronic equipment such as radios and communications systems emits signals able to be detected within the spectrum, and those emissions can reveal a military unit's location to enemy sensors and expose troops to harm. Dzyne describes the Grasshopper as an expendable aerial resupply system purpose-built for contested and denied environments."

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