Romanian Gepard tracks US Army drone in Poland counter-drone drill
During joint counter-drone training at Bemowo Piskie Training Area in Poland on August 18, 2026, US Army drone operators flew first-person-view aircraft for Romanian crews to track from a Flakpanzer Gepard, US Army V Corps has announced.
The drones came from the strike section of Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 2nd Battalion, 37th Armored Regiment. V Corps have not identified the drone model or disclosed how many were flown. The Gepard carries search and tracking radars alongside optical sights, and V Corps has not specified which the crews used.
Romania’s Iron Cheetahs join NATO battle group in Poland
The Romanian unit in Poland is the Iron Cheetahs air defense detachment, designated GBAD XIX and generated by the 348th Battalion, according to the Romanian Land Forces. Crews, which began field training in Poland in April 2026, fired the Gepard at the Capu Midia range before deploying.
The detachment belongs to NATO Forward Land Forces Battle Group-Poland, which draws on Romanian, Croatian, British and US troops under Lieutenant Colonel Steven Saxion, who also commands the US battalion.
Cold War-era Gepard meets the modern drone threat
The Gepard is a radar-directed anti-aircraft gun system, initially designed during the Cold War to engage low-flying jets and helicopters. It was developed in the 1960s and entered West German service in the 1970s, built on a Leopard 1 chassis and armed with two 35 mm Oerlikon cannons. Germany withdrew its own fleet in 2010, and the type is now out of production. Romania is among the few NATO members still fielding it.
That withdrawal left European armies thin on gun-based short-range air defense as cheap drones began saturating airspace.
Instead, NATO fighter jets have engaged drones repeatedly through 2026, including a maritime drone neutralized by a Romanian F-16 gun pass in the Black Sea on August 20, 2026. The post Romanian Gepard tracks US Army drone in Poland counter-drone drill appeared first on AeroTime.
During joint counter-drone training at Bemowo Piskie Training Area in Poland on August 18, 2026, US Army drone operators flew first-person-view aircraft for Romanian crews to…
The post Romanian Gepard tracks US Army drone in Poland counter-drone drill appeared first on AeroTime.
