The Pentagon’s first kamikaze drone unit is officially ready for action.
According to a recent Bloomberg report, “The Pentagon’s first kamikaze drone unit is ready to participate if President Donald Trump decides to launch strikes on Iran, according to US officials and analysts.” The unit, known as Task Force Scorpion, marks a dramatic shift in how America prepares to fight its wars.
Scorpion.
Of all the names that could have been chosen, that is the one now attached to a one way attack drone force being positioned amid the largest US regional military buildup since the 2003 invasion of Iraq.
It is enough to make Bible readers pause.
A New Era of Swarm Warfare
US Central Command spokesman Capt. Tim Hawkins said, “We established the squadron last year to rapidly equip our warfighters with new combat drone capabilities that continue to evolve.”
The drones are called Low Cost Unmanned Combat Attack System drones, or LUCAS. Centcom estimated they cost about $35,000 each. That price tag alone signals a major strategic pivot away from traditional multi million dollar platforms.
Defense analyst Anna Miskelley told Bloomberg the deployment marks “a pivot away from US military reliance on multi million dollar platforms like the MQ-9 Reaper, which are increasingly difficult to justify in high attrition, swarm based conflicts.”
These drones are lightweight, autonomous, and designed for one-way attacks, reconnaissance missions and maritime strikes. They were even successfully test-launched in the Arabian Gulf in mid-December off the flight deck of the USS Santa Barbara.
With a 40 pound payload, they are not built to crack hardened bunkers. But as Hudson Institute analyst Bryan Clark explained, “this force would be an effective way to attack softer, distributed targets in Iran like missile production facilities, road networks and missile launch sites.”
He added, “Destroying these kinds of targets require a lot of dispersed attacks that inexpensive drones are well suited to deliver. Iran doesn’t have much of an air defense network anymore, so they may not be able to shoot down many.”
Reverse Engineered From Iran
In a twist that underscores how rapidly warfare is evolving, the Bloomberg report notes the one way attack drones were reverse engineered from Iran’s Shahed-136.
The United States is adapting to a battlefield where swarms of inexpensive autonomous weapons can overwhelm defenses.
But again, the name lingers.
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Revelation’s Sting
In Revelation 9, during the fifth trumpet judgment, John describes locust like beings rising from the abyss. “They had tails like scorpions, and there were stings in their tails. Their power was to hurt men five months.”
The torment is described as being “like the torment of a scorpion when it strikes a man.”
It is a chilling image. Not immediate destruction, but sustained agony. A sting that incapacitates. A swarm that descends with precision and purpose.
No, the Pentagon is not quoting Revelation in its strategic planning. But in a world where swarming autonomous weapons fill the skies and nations brace for sudden strikes, the imagery feels less abstract than it once did.
The Bible consistently uses scorpions to symbolize danger, judgment and spiritual hostility. In Luke 10:19, Jesus speaks of authority over “serpents and scorpions” and over all the power of the enemy. In Revelation, scorpion like creatures are instruments of judgment unleashed in the last days.
Now, a military unit bearing that very name stands ready amid escalating tensions with Iran while diplomatic talks continue in Geneva.
We are living in a moment where the language of Scripture and the language of modern warfare are beginning to overlap in unsettling ways.
Knowing the Times
This is not about panic. It is about discernment.
Jesus rebuked those who could read the weather but could not discern the signs of the times. Scripture repeatedly calls believers to watch, to understand and to remain anchored in truth.
Whether or not Task Force Scorpion ever launches into combat, the fact that we are discussing autonomous swarms of one way attack drones in the same breath as Revelation imagery should awaken something in us.
These are not ordinary days.
The only way to navigate extraordinary times is to know the Word of God. To understand what Scripture says about judgment, deception and the last days. To ground ourselves not in fear but in truth.
Because the sting of a scorpion is painful. But the Word of God prepares us for whatever may come.
James Lasher, a seasoned writer and editor at Charisma Media, combines faith and storytelling with a background in journalism from Otterbein University and ministry experience in Guatemala and the LA Dream Center. A Marine Corps and Air Force veteran, he is the author of The Revelation of Jesus: A Common Man’s Commentary and a contributor to Charisma magazine. For interviews and media inquiries, please contact [email protected].
