The US Army has lost 24 MQ-9 Reaper reconnaissance and strike drones in almost a month and a half since the start of the war against Iran. Their total cost is estimated at about USD 720 million.
American news channel CBS News reported this, citing its own sources.
Two unnamed US officials said that since April 1, the US Army has lost eight MQ-9 Reaper drones in the Middle East. The total number of devices lost since the start of the war against Iran is 24.
CBS News notes that the cost of one MQ-9 Reaper drone is estimated at about USD 30 million. Thus, the US losses from the destruction of these drones alone have already amounted to about USD 720 million.
The MQ-9 Reaper is a reconnaissance and strike unmanned aerial vehicle developed by General Atomics. The first flight was made in February 2001. It is capable of reaching speeds of over 400 kilometers per hour, and its practical flight altitude is 15.2 kilometers. It can stay in the air for 27 to 33 hours.
As the Ukrainian News agency earlier reported, last Saturday, April 4, the US Department of Defense said that since the beginning of the war against Iran, the US army's losses have amounted to 13 people killed. More than 360 servicemen were wounded.
As a reminder, on April 3, Iran said that the country's air defense systems allegedly shot down an American F-15 fighter. Later, it was reported that the plane was shot down over Iranian territory, and both pilots managed to eject.
Later, it became known that the United States conducted a large-scale special operation to rescue the pilots. It involved several hundred special forces servicemen and several pieces of aircraft.
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