Defence to train soldiers with Belgian-made drone
Belgium's Ministry of Defence will in future train military personnel using a training drone developed by North Sea Drones, a training and expertise centre based in Zeebrugge. Defence minister Theo Francken tested the model on Tuesday during a working visit to the company.
The Zeebrugge-based firm was commissioned to design a domestically produced training drone, developed without the use of foreign components. The device, intended exclusively for military training, has been named THEQ-1, in a nod to the Defence minister's first name.
"Our military personnel are not yet trained to work with drones, even though this is now a reality for the Ministry of Defence," Francken said. "That is why we urgently need to accelerate. Hundreds of soldiers will be trained to operate drones. It is a good thing that training drones are being manufactured in our country. That way, we do not have to purchase them abroad."
According to Francken, Belgium is seeking to make up lost ground. "We lost many years under previous governments, when drones were dismissed as unethical and unnecessary, but technological developments cannot be ignored," he said. "What we see in Ukraine is essentially a drone war. We must be prepared for that."
Young people undertaking a year of military service will also receive drone training. "It is important that these young people learn to fly drones as soon as possible. That is the intention. The plans are not yet finalised, but we will certainly train many young people to operate drones," the minister said.
North Sea Drones specialises in professional drone training and defence-related applications. The company has worked with the Ministry of Defence for years to train military drone pilots.
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