US Seeks Cheaper Hunter-Killer Drones After Iran Destroys $1B of Reapers

US seeks cheaper hunter-killer drones after Iran destroys $1B worth of Reapers

After losing dozens of expensive MQ-9 Reaper drones worth over $1 billion in the conflict with Iran, the Pentagon is urgently seeking affordable alternatives. The military recognizes that relying on high-cost aircraft is unsustainable against adversaries using cheap anti-aircraft defenses. Inspired by Ukraine's successful strategy of overwhelming enemy air defenses with swarms of inexpensive drones, the US aims to deploy cost-effective hunter-killer drones designed to be expendable in combat.

"The US military's current reliance on drones and crewed aircraft, each costing more than $30 million, is unsustainable against adversaries utilizing layered defenses enabled by increasingly low-cost antiaircraft capabilities."