It appears that 3D printing was extensively used by Israel in the conflict in Iran.
Earlier this month, the country unleashed an unexpected attack on rival Iran. The attack involved a substantial amount of conventional military equipment, but there was also a surprise tactic: drones from within Iran.
Normally, weaponry must transit from the attacking country to the target country, but that wasn’t the case here. Apparently, Israeli agents were working within Iran itself to produce a large number of drones that were used in the attacks. The drones were positioned near targets by trucks and other means, and then simultaneously released during the attack.
The ability for Israel to produce all this military equipment from inside Iran without being detected is quite surprising, but it turns out there was 3D printing involved.
A post on X shows what appears to be video of a small manufacturing plant where some of the drones were produced. The text of the post, translated from Persian, reads:
“3D printer
CNC
PCB
Radio control
ExplosivesSafe house
Trained individuals
This isn’t a plan for a few months — it’s for several years!”
The video shows drone parts and some assembled drones, along with equipment being used to manufacture them. As the camera pans around, there are at least two desktop FFF 3D printers visible.
What model are they? The video is extraordinarily grainy, so it is very hard to tell. However, I’d make a guess that they could be a Creality Ender-3 variant. The large vertical power supplies visible on the right side of the machines are present on the Ender-3, Ender-3 Pro, and Ender-3 Neo. These machines could be any one of those models.
Regardless of which specific model was used, there is a significant milestone here: inexpensive desktop 3D printers were used in a primary role for a major military mission — and one that took place behind enemy lines.
Earlier, Ukraine undertook a similar mission to destroy Russian aircraft that was similarly successful. We don’t know anything about how they were able to produce the drones.
It could be that the Ukrainians used similar 3D print technology to make their drones, and it is likely they do so for routine manufacturing of their normal drone force.
Did we just cross into a new world where these cheap machines are now a key tool for the military?
Via X
