Iran’s most powerful military leader, Quds Force Commander General Qasem Soleimani,
was confirmed by U.S. sources to have been assassinated by an MQ-9 Reaper attack drone
near Baghdad International Airport in the early hours of January 3rd, 2020. According to reports,
the American Reaper drones were launched from the Creech Air Force Base in Nevada. The drone strike
was personally ordered by U.S. President Donald Trump in the evening of December 2nd, and the
U.S. Congress was informed of the attack before it took place. The drones are believed to have
conducted thousands of missions in US service and were a pioneer in the field of unmanned warfare.
Hello everyone, you are watching another episode of Military TV. In today’s session we will
learn about MQ-9 REAPER: The Most Dangerous Military Drone on Earth, if you want to get
further detail regarding this combat drone, stay tuned and keep watching this video till the end!
The General Atomics MQ-9 Reaper which is sometimes called Predator B is an
unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) capable of remotely controlled or autonomous flight
operations developed by General Atomics Aeronautical Systems (GA-ASI) primarily
for the United States Air Force (USAF). The MQ-9 and other UAVs are referred to
as Remotely Piloted Vehicles/Aircraft to indicate their human ground controllers.
The MQ-9 Reaper system was proposed by the US Air Force in response to a requirement from the
Department of Defense (DOD) to support overseas contingency operations programs. It is larger
and more powerful than the MQ-1 Predator, and is designed to execute time-sensitive targets with
persistence and precision, and destroy or disable those targets. The MQ-9 which stands with the "M",
is the DOD designation for multi-role, and "Q" which means remotely piloted aircraft system,
while the "9" indicates the ninth in the series of remotely piloted aircraft systems.
Based on the current update, the USAF operated over 300 MQ-9 Reapers as of May 2021 with 16
additional units on the way as authorized by the FY2021 Congressional budget. Several new
equipment upgrades had been retrofitted onto some of the active MQ-9 aircraft to improve
performance in "high-end combat situations" as of that date, to be included in all further
procurements of the MQ-9 and this combat drone is projected to end of its service life in 2035.
Talking about its general characteristics, with the speeds of 260 knots,
it can operate up to 50,000 feet, and has a 1746 kilogram payload capacity that includes
1361 kilograms of external stores. The MQ-9 has also been modified for extended range operations
through the addition of external fuel tanks capable of holding 1,300 lbs of fuel. This
provides for greater on station time and further range. The modification also adds an
extra blade to the propeller and an alcohol-water injection system to improve take-off performance.
The MQ-9 baseline system also carries the Multi-Spectral Targeting System, which has
a robust suite of visual sensors for targeting. The MTS-B integrates an infrared sensor, color,
monochrome daylight TV camera, shortwave infrared camera, laser designator, and laser illuminator.
The full-motion video from each of the imaging sensors can be viewed as separate video streams
or fused. The unit also incorporates a laser designator, which precisely designates targets for
employment of laser-guided munitions. The Reaper is also equipped with a synthetic aperture radar
and also employ up to eight laser-guided missiles, Air-to-Ground Missile-114 Hellfire, which possess
highly accurate, low-collateral damage, anti-armor and anti-personnel engagement capabilities.
Considering its role, the MQ-9 is part of a system that support strike aircraft and
ground commanders by acquiring and tracking dynamic targets or other useful intelligence.
It is also capable of supporting a wide range of operations such as coastal and
border surveillance, weapons tracking, embargo enforcement, humanitarian or disaster assistance,
support of peacekeeping and counter-narcotic operations. The aircraft is battle-tested and
has been seen in intense action in Middle Eastern countries including Syria, Iraq, and Iran as well
as Afghanistan and Pakistan. The aerial vehicle has been acquired by the US Air Force, NASA,
the Royal Air Force of the United Kingdom, Italy, France, and Spain among others.
In regard to the price, according to the update from Navmar Applied Science
Corporation (NASC), the drones were about $14 million apiece in 2008, but the Air Force’s
latest budget figures shows each new Reaper costs $32 million. That makes them even more
expensive than the pricey, top-end AH-64E Apache attack helicopter. It seems to be a lot for what
is, at heart, supposed to be an expendable drone. However, according to another source,
Reaper is not cheaper to buy than any other aircraft it is compared to,
it is multiples more expensive that is from two to six times more costly. In addition,
as quoted from Forbes, the 2.5-ton drones, with a range of 1,200 miles cost about $16 million
and is considered among the most important weapons in America’s arsenal.
This drone may also be the most historic drone strike in history, in which it fired at least two
Hellfire missiles at vehicles carrying Iranian Major General Qassem Soleimani, Iraqi militia
leader Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis and their entourage upon arrival at Baghdad International Airport,
according to news reports. Hence, due to its performance, the Reaper undoubtedly
classified as a spectacularly drone and has performed an impactful way for many years,
particularly when it comes to counterinsurgency and counterterrorism missions.
For years, the Hellfire-armed Reaper drone has been effective
in killing terrorists with precision strikes and maintaining that crucial intelligence,
surveillance, and reconnaissance “persistent stare” above high threat areas.
That’s all for today, if you have any suggestion for other military drones to discuss,
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