Task Force ODIN

Task Force ODIN, whose name is an acronym for observe, detect, identify, and neutralize, is a United States Army aviation battalion created in August 2006 to conduct reconnaissance, surveillance, and target acquisition (RSTA) operations to combat insurgent operators of improvised explosive devices in Iraq.

The United States Army stood up TF ODIN as a Quick Reaction Capabilities project whose efficacy proved so effective it shaped the Secretary of Defense Directive to establish the Air Force Project Liberty and other ISR related missions.

Built by General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, the extended-range multi-purpose hybrid UAV has an advanced sensor package incorporating electro-optical sensors, including FLIR, and synthetic aperture radar together with a laser rangefinder and a laser designator, the latter for "painting" targets for strikes with Hellfire missiles and laser-guided bombs.

[1][2][3] Task Force ODIN received a Meritorious Unit Commendation (Army) for their work with the 25th Infantry Division.

[6] As of May 2019, MAG Aerospace continues to help the U.S. military fight the Taliban in Afghanistan as part of Task Force ODIN under the Army's Medium Altitude Reconnaissance and Surveillance System (MARSS) program.