U.S. Air Force Special Operations Forces are exploring using motorized gliders to deliver supplies, including medical equipment, to small teams operating beyond the reach of reliable supply lines.
During an ongoing international exercise in Iceland, Air Force Special Operations Command personnel plan to drop a motorized glider full of supplies to teammates on the ground.
As have similar military efforts to research aerial drones and ground robotsseeks to teach the unit how to support troops in future battles where conventional supplies may be too difficult or too dangerous.
In a future conflict, especially in the Arctic or other remote areas, aircraft and ships may not be able to regularly move supplies to troops on the ground because of enemy threats or the enormous distance the supply effort would have to travel.
“We specifically want to train in long-range resupply in contested environments,” the 352d Special Operations Wing mission commander, who was not named, said in a statement. Air Force news item about Exercise Northern Viking 2026.
The US has increasingly focused on the Arctic, also known as the Arctic “High North”. Melting Arctic ice is opening new sea routes and increasing access to waters and resources that were once harder to reach, making it an area of growing strategic competition for the US and its NATO allies, Russia and China.
The Air Force has not identified the manufacturer or model of the powered glider it plans to test. Earlier this year, Army Green Berets were experimented with in Romania and Macedonia glider drones created by Dzyne, which were released by aircraft overhead and loaded with building materials, food and medical supplies.
A special operations logistics official told Business Insider at the time that the glider, called the Grasshopper, had minimal technology on board, making it an ideal option for troops trying to avoid giving away their position through electronic emissions.
Of the training in Iceland, the unnamed commander said it “gives us a unique opportunity to practice how we expect to play, where we expect to play, and alongside the partners we will play with.”
