AIBRIEF
The Washington Post reports at least 45 MQ 9 Reaper drones, slow propeller driven surveillance and strike drones, destroyed in the conflict at a stated cost above $1.3 billion.
The US military has lost at least 45 MQ-9 Reaper drones in the war with Iran, The Washington Post reported on August 13, citing three US officials familiar with the count. That is roughly a quarter of the fleet. At a per-airframe cost of $30 million to $50 million, the lost drones represent more than $1.3 billion, the Post reported.
Reapers fly slowly at low altitude, a profile the Post describes as "relatively easy targets" for Iran and its proxies around the Strait of Hormuz. Not every loss was a shootdown. An unspecified number of Reapers also crashed after operators lost communications links to the aircraft.
The depletion was already on the record before this week's update. The Air Force entered the war with about 165 Reapers and the Marine Corps with 20, and by May, Lt. Gen. David Tabor told the Senate the Air Force fleet had fallen to roughly 135, per Air Force Times. Trade press has since opened a restock debate over whether rebuilding the fleet at this price is the right call.