Operation Absolute Resolve may mark a doctrinal inflection point in U.S. strike warfare. 

Video evidence from Venezuela strongly suggests that American forces employed long-range kamikaze drones—also known as one-way attack drones—during the January 2026 operation to capture Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro. 

Multiple clips recorded on the ground show a distinct high-pitched buzzing immediately preceding explosions, a signature long associated with loitering munitions powered by small piston engines. 

The operation unfolded over the weekend and culminated in Maduro’s capture.

The strikes were officially designated Operation Absolute Resolve. While U.S. officials have not confirmed specific platforms used, the audiovisual evidence aligns closely with known kamikaze drone employment observed in Ukraine, the Middle East, and the South Caucasus over the past five years.

Senior U.S. military leadership has acknowledged extensive drone use during the operation, though without naming systems. 

Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Dan “Razin” Caine said the Joint Air Component “began dismantling and disabling the air defense systems in Venezuela” to ensure helicopter access into Caracas. 

He added that “numerous remotely piloted drones” were among the assets employed. U.S. Special Operations Command declined to comment when asked directly about kamikaze drones, while U.S. Southern Command and the White House offered no additional clarification.

The suppression of enemy air defenses (SEAD/DEAD) mission was central. 

Video and imagery show strikes on radar sites, communications nodes, and armored vehicles, including damage at the Fuerte Tiuna military complex and the Generalissimo Francisco de Miranda Air Base. Venezuelan Dragoon 300 armored vehicles were among the systems destroyed.

The suspected drones align with a broader U.S. push to field long-range, low-cost one-way attack systems. 

In October 2025, U.S. Central Command disclosed the first operational deployment of the Low-Cost Uncrewed Combat Attack System (LUCAS) by Task Force Scorpion Strike. 

LUCAS is derived from the Iranian Shahed-136 design but adds networked swarming and beyond-line-of-sight control. In December 2025, U.S. Navy and special operations units demonstrated ship-launched variants.

Such drones are particularly suited to probing air defenses. By forcing radar activation, they expose emitters for follow-on strikes or allow crews to route helicopters around threats.

U.S. forces had spent months mapping Venezuela’s electronic order of battle, but mobile systems remained a variable risk.

If confirmed, the Venezuela operation would represent the first real-world combat use of a new generation of U.S. kamikaze drones. 

The platform type—larger than typical helicopter-launched “launched effects”—suggests a strategic role beyond tactical point defense. The psychological impact of the audible drone approach, likened historically to World War II-era dive bombers, is an added effect noted in the analysis.

No official acknowledgment has been made, but the convergence of video evidence, operational context, and prior disclosures strongly points to a quiet debut of a capability long discussed and recently fielded.