The US is trying to solve the problem with the MQ-9 Reaper after losing 30 drones in the war with Iran.

3 631 3

During the latest war against Iran, which began in late February 2026, and in missions against the Houthis, the Americans lost up to 30 MQ-9 Reaper reconnaissance and attack drones. This forced the US Air Force to urgently search for replacements for these expensive drones (costing $30 million per unit), which can remain airborne for 16 to 33 hours, depending on their payload.

The MQ-9A is no longer in production, so US generals are looking to purchase unused drones from General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. (GA-ASI, a division of General Dynamics). However, according to the company itself, fewer than 10 new MQ-9A Reapers (of those it owns) are available to customers worldwide.

Prior to this, over 50 aging MQ-9 Reapers and MQ-1 Predators were sent to the AMARG storage facility for disassembly and maintenance of active fleets. Currently, the U.S. Air Force's MQ-9 Reaper fleet has been reduced from 165 at the start of fiscal year 2026 to approximately 135 units.

However, the US Air Force has one loophole. In late January 2026, GA-ASI tested the MQ-9B SeaGuardian drone, equipped with the new Expanded Sonobuoy Dispensing System (ESDS), marking a major milestone in the development of unmanned maritime patrol. For the first time, submarine-hunting sonobuoys were deployed. Following this, the US Navy was expected to approve the use of the MQ-9B SeaGuardian for active anti-submarine warfare, but the results are unknown.

The US is trying to solve the problem with the MQ-9 Reaper after losing 30 drones in the war with Iran.

Despite this, GA-ASI uses its own MQ-9B SeaGuardian aircraft to provide reconnaissance services in some programs (such as for the Japan Coast Guard). After the lease ends, these airframes are sometimes purchased or transferred to other customers. Therefore, the US Air Force may well acquire some of these drones for conversion to its own needs.
3 comments
Information
Dear reader, to leave comments on the publication, you must sign in.
  1. Sergey Latyshev
    Sergey Latyshev
    0
    6 June 2026 18: 41
    What nonsense.
    It was 160, now it's 130, and there's still some left... So what?

    IMHO, it's cheaper than the F22 losses from some hurricane...
    is
    1. svoroponov
      svoroponov
      0
      5 July 2026 14: 46
      You're miscalculating. The fact that they've been produced is one thing. But there are losses for various reasons, as well as the decommissioning of devices that have reached the end of their service life. So the US really does have a problem with them. Besides, if even the Houthis were destroying them en masse, then no one in the US is going to produce them anymore. The number of Papuans in the world has drastically decreased. Now the US will have to come up with something else.
  2. aslanxnumx
    aslanxnumx
    +2
    6 June 2026 21: 09
    as if we have an analogue of the Reaper