Polish GOBLIN and GNOM unmanned systems at exercise in Belgium

On Friday, April 24, 2026, the Polish company Macro-System, based in Warsaw, announced on its LinkedIn profile that it had presented the GOBLIN and GNOM unmanned ground platforms to the Belgian Land Component.

Photos: Angelo_graphy

GNOM and GOBLIN have been incorporated into the exercise scenarios of the Belgian Land Component. The maneuvers involved land forces, more than a dozen tactical scenarios, and continuous operations conducted 24 hours a day in varied operational conditions.

This is what the Belgian Army’s first pilot exercise involving unmanned ground vehicles looked like. We are all the more pleased that the choice fell on our GNOM and GOBLIN solutions. This is another step toward the practical use of autonomous systems in modern armed forces.

The main objective of the undertaking was to directly integrate unmanned systems into tactical scenarios carried out by the army. The vehicles worked with military units, supporting tasks including reconnaissance, logistics, and evacuation.

“Exercises of this kind serve not only to test technology, but also to build new operational competencies in the armed forces of allied countries,” said Mateusz Ciepliński, President of the Management Board of MACRO-SYSTEM.

Thank you for your trust, partnership, and feedback. Thanks to initiatives like this, our solutions can be continuously developed, allowing them to remain at the technological forefront.

MACRO-SYSTEM

Notably, the larger Universal Land Carrier (ULC) in the GOBLIN reconnaissance and combat version was equipped with an AREX ZMU-05 weapon module with a 12.7 mm M2 Browning machine gun, supplied by WB Group. The vehicle has an electric 6×6 drive system, enabling it to reach speeds of up to 30 km/h. With a curb weight of 830 kg, the platform has an additional payload capacity of 300 kg. Its operating time is 10 hours, although last year it was demonstrated that this can be doubled.

During the exercise, it supported frontline units and identified enemy firing positions in real time. It has a modular design, allowing it to be quickly adapted to different sensors and weapons.

The smaller vehicle is the GLMS GNOM loitering ground munition, which reaches speeds of up to 80 km/h. It is equipped with interchangeable warheads – shaped-charge, fragmentation, or thermobaric – with a maximum weight of 7 kg. Its driving range is 500 m. It is intended to engage armored vehicles and personnel, damage buildings, and attack fortified positions.

The exercise lasted around the clock, including at night. The vehicles were used for three of the most dangerous tasks on the modern battlefield: reconnaissance, logistics, and target identification.

For MACRO-SYSTEM, this is the first confirmed use of its systems by a Western European army outside Poland. Previously, the systems had been presented on July 22, 2025, at the Air Force Institute of Technology in Warsaw.

Then, on September 17, 2025, at the Land Forces Training Center in Orzysz, they took part in the Iron Gate-25 tactical exercise with troops, held as part of the federated Iron Defender-25 exercise. Subunits of the 18th Mechanized Division used GOBLIN to cooperate with Rosomak wheeled armored personnel carriers in towing heavy loads, while GNOM carried out kinetic strikes and raids on command posts.

UPDATE

On Saturday, April 25, the Belgian Ministry of Defence published a press release on the exercise.

According to the release, the tests were conducted in Leopoldsburg by the 5th Battalion (Bataljon Bevrijding – 5 Linie). Their purpose was to thoroughly examine the systems’ potential integration at the tactical level, without prejudging any subsequent procurement decisions.

It was emphasized that, beyond the strictly operational aspect, the tests also fit into the dynamics of European military cooperation, particularly with Poland, the country of origin of the manufacturer that developed the systems under evaluation. This exchange contributes to the sharing of experience, the strengthening of interoperability, and joint reflection on the development of land capabilities.