XVIII Airborne Corps conducts drone threat training at Fort Bragg

The XVIII Airborne Corps conducted Exercise Scarlet Dragon from September 11–17, 2026, at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, to address the evolving threat of unmanned aircraft systems on modern battlefields. The exercise brought together soldiers and industry partners to test emerging technologies, including artificial intelligence, electronic warfare, and resilient data pathways, in realistic and austere field conditions.

The training focused on integrating sensors, command and control, and defensive fires to detect, track, and defeat drone threats. Scenarios included large-scale drone swarms of up to 100 unmanned aircraft, designed to replicate the tactics and complexity soldiers may encounter in future conflicts. Army Col. Tom Monahan described the event as a “validation exercise in the dirt,” while Col. Paul Staeheli noted the goal was to transition capability gaps into requirements to better support the warfighter.