Why Has America Lost So Many MQ-9 Reaper Drones Against Iran? |
Why Has America Lost So Many MQ-9 Reaper Drones Against Iran?
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Unlike the MQ-9’s previous targets during the 20-year War on Terror, Iran has the ability to shoot back.
Operation Epic Fury has come with extraordinarily heavy UAV losses. The MQ-9 Reaper, once the pride of America’s drone fleet, has been especially affected; at least 24 drones have been shot down in the Middle East since the onset of the conflict. At a price tag of $30 million each, the cost of the lost Reaper drones to the US Air Force is roughly $720 million in total—higher than the cost of the E-3 Sentry destroyed on the ground, the high-end MQ-4C Triton drone lost in early April, or the multiple aircraft destroyed during the rescue of “Dude 44,” the pilot and weapons systems officer of the F-15E Strike Eagle shot down inside Iran.
Perhaps even more important than the fiscal cost of losing the drones is the attrition rate, which exposes the limits of legacy drones operating in hostile airspace—even in an environment in which the United States has largely achieved air superiority.
About the MQ-9 Reaper Drone
Year Introduced: 2007
Length: 36 ft 1 in (11 m)
Wingspan: 65 ft 7 in (20 m)
Weight: 10,494 lb (4,760 lb)
Engines: One Honeywell TPE331-10 turboprop engine
Top Speed: ~300 mph (482 km/h); typical cruising........