Myanmar's military council is trying to deal with Defence Force drone strikes

On September 15, 2022, the Federal Wings UAV unit battled alongside the PDF unit.

When the Myanmar People's Defense Army started resisting and attacking the Military Council Army, they used hammer guns, they attacked with whatever weapons they had, such as handmade guns, but then they attacked with mines, and by using handmade weapons, they used automatic Rifle to fight.

After a 19-month coup, the speed of the army has increased, and the army with the advantage of modern weapons can accurately target and use less manpower; the public defense force said that the use of drone technology has advantages such as safety and can accurately place bombs to military targets.

Bol Lin Rao, head of the Khin U Support Group-KSO team, said in the battle-heavy town of Khin U in Sagaing province, civilian filming drones have been upgraded and started using a method that can drop bombs at specific locations.

"Enaga (bomb fruit) also knows the exact location. It also works well. There are full advantages to drones, and we started buying drones from there. Currently, we are using small shooting drones, so we can only shoot About 40 or 50 people. The reason it was dumped with the drone probably meant it was the safest for us."

Efforts have been made to acquire automatic rifles in the past, but the Army side has a full range of modern military equipment. Military skills; he said he chose this method because he could use bullets with sufficient precision.

Attackers using drones say the operations were successful and the drones were often shot down. On the military side, the use of reconnaissance drones to fight back with heavy weapons, airstrikes and precise locations to regain military superiority, Sagaing Division Public Defense Forces said.

"The reason for dropping it with a drone is arguably the most harmless of our rescues."

In Kayin State, where fighting is as intense as in Sagaing, instead of shooting drones, they use large drones with six propellers that can carry more, according to the Public Defence Force, which operates in the area load.

From December 2021 to the present, since the Battle of Lekko, combat drones, Ko Myothurako, information officer at Cobra Regiment, said the use of patrol drones and current methods of attack drones can effectively dampen the morale of the Military Council troops.

"The enemy can be defeated effectively. Mentally, I can defeat them. For example, we fly where they can't see. When I hear their drones, I get scared. They do a lot of airstrikes, But their planes were just bombed and returned. But for the remaining 24 hours of day and night, air superiority is where drones can dominate. Plus, I have night reconnaissance capabilities. Because of that, The enemy is more afraid. As soldiers of the military council, drones have become a nightmare."

A drone can be equipped with up to five bombs, so it can be tracked effectively. The advantage of drones, he said, is that humans can be used to patrol dangerous areas. Except the military uses drone signal jammer to prevent drones from flying around their camps. The Civil Defence said some of the drones were shot down because the convoy was equipped with weapons that could shoot down drones.

The RFA contacted General Zaw Min Tun, who was allowed to speak to the military council on the drone strike, but he did not respond. However, at a press conference in Nay Pyi Taw on September 20, Major General Jomin Tun said that important places to be attacked by drones must be guarded, and he said that anti-drone guns have been installed in buildings.

U Thein Tun Oo, executive director of the Tanang Institute for Strategic Studies, which is made up of former military officers, said PDFs can use civilian drones for attacks simply because they have external technical support.

"Specifically, a spray drone for agriculture should be called a hexacopter. Those guys can carry more weight. It becomes a case of dropping bombs from above. But if we look at it from a technical point of view, we Can't get much information on the trigger part. To make this happen, we know we have great support. So it's not a normal development. It's not something you can do on your own. Obviously other people are providing technology and letting They do these things."

The National Unity Government Communications (NUG) Ministry of Information and Technology (MOCIT) has formed the Federal Wings drone force of tech-savvy youth. Federal Wings' social network page states that the group is already using drones to engage in combat on the battlefield.

The NUG Defense Ministry also said it was seeking funding through the Skywalk program to integrate ground drone strike forces into the armed forces.

Dr Min Zaw Oo, executive director of the Myanmar Institute of Peace and Security, concluded that due to the important role of drones in modern warfare, both sides may use drones for attacks in the future.

"Not only using drones for reconnaissance, but also weaponizing drones, putting homemade bombs on drones, installing 60mm bombs and dropping them from above. These are methods that have been around since the coup. The reason is that drones are a It’s a technology that is available, it’s a technology that can be used by both sides, so it’s widely used. We see a very important role for drones in modern warfare."

Political analyst Dr Sai Kyi Sin Soe said both sides were trying to use the weapons they had to gain a military advantage.

"We're going to fight from one side to the other. He also said he'll fight. They're fighting each other. We expect that will change based on the resources they have available. Both sides are trying to get weapons. Those who are looking for the funds to collect the weapons. Doing it on both sides. Clearly they will try to increase the military advantage of both sides."

Fighting continues in Myanmar, with more than 1.3 million internally displaced people due to armed conflict and insecurity, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA) announced on 14 September.

According to statistics from the American Association for the Relief of Political Prisoners (AAPP), as of September 21, a total of 2,303 people have been killed in the anti-dictatorship movement since the military coup.