Israel Defence Forces using FPVs in Lebanon

Video footage has emerged showing Israel Defence Force (IDF) soldiers using FPV drones to strike Hezbollah fighters in Lebanon. The strikes suggest the IDF’s armoury is growing in depth and options to match weapons to a target.

By Sam Cranny-Evans, editor of Calibre Defence, published on May 6, 2026.

At least two videos made available on X.com show the IDF to be using radio controlled FPVs against Hezbollah in Lebanon. The most recent was posted on March 5 by Emanuel Fabian, a correspondent for the Times of Israel.

The short clip shows an FPV intercepting two people on a motorbike as they accelerate down a road. The video includes the now familiar FPV footage, of a distorted screen with rotor blades just visible at the edge of the screen.

In the video, the IDF pilot overtook the two Hezbollah fighters and flew the drone into the driver, bringing both the fighters and the bike down. That strike was observed by another drone flying overhead.

However a video released on April 7, which showed a similar engagement against another person on a motorbike was shown only from the FPV pilot’s perspective.

The IDF ordered around 17,000 FPVs in 2025 and 2026, according to reports in the Times of Israel and Jerusalem Post respectively. The first order in 2025 covered 5,000 FPVs from Israeli company XTEND. The second was much larger tender, for at least 12,000 FPVs. That tender also included a requirement for some with night vision cameras, which drove the cost of the procurement up quite significantly.

Hezbollah has also released footage of its own FPV strikes on IDF equipment and recently destroyed a Merkava Mk IV. It has also used drone bombers to attack Israeli forces out in the open.

Calibre comment: FPVs are another tool in the IDF arsenal

The view from an observer drone as an IDF FPV closes with two Hezbollah fighters on a motorbike.

A screenshot of the May 5 FPV strike taken from the reconnaissance drone’s point of view. Credit: Israeli MoD.

The use of FPVs by both sides will likely drive further adaptations and attempts to mitigate their effects. For the IDF’s strike capabilities, the FPV adds a lower cost, lower collateral option to its normal approach. In past wars, the two FPV episodes that have been realised may have been addressed through a missile strike from a drone. While effective, the costs of those strikes are quite significant, and have a greater risk of collateral damage. However, an FPV with a modest payload gives the IDF a number of benefits:

Strikes may be more immediately available than a drone or airpower.
They can be carried out with lower risk to civilians.
They are a much lower cost than larger munitions assuming a simple design.

However, this should not be confused for a move away from the conventional combat power that defines the IDF. As recently noted by the head of the Israeli MoD, Major General Amir Baram, airpower remains key to the IDF way of war. As does its conventional artillery and armoured formations. The FPV adds new tools to that mixture of weapons.

On the reverse, Hezbollah’s use of the drones poses a new survivability challenge for the IDF. One that it will have to adapt quickly to if it wants to maintain its operational tempo in Lebanon.

The lead image shows a screenshot from an IDF video of the May 5 FPV strike. Credit: Israeli MoD.