The U.S. Special Operations Command’s plan to purchase five-armed overwatch aircraft and up to 75 planes to replace the U-28 Draco is still undecided as the Congress has made significant cuts in its budget. SOCOM has requested $101 million in the fiscal year 2021, but what it got is a budget cut and a defense policy bill prohibiting it from buying an armed overwatch aircraft in FY21. With this, SOCOM is set to conduct flying demonstrations in the hopes of convincing Congress.

U.S. Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class Joel Miller