American unmanned aerial vehicle, notable for extensive use in Middle East conflicts since the 21st century. Key figures: top speed 300 km/h, range 1,850 km, service ceiling 15,000 m, max takeoff weight 4,760 kg, unit price $30M, built 300. In service with 5 air forces as of 2026 — United States (183), France (12), Italy (5) and 2 others.
| Length | 11 m (36.1 ft) |
| Wingspan | 20 m (65.6 ft) |
| Empty weight | 2,223 kg (4,901 lbs) |
| Max. takeoff weight | 4,760 kg (10,494 lbs) |
| Powerplant | 1 × Honeywell TPE331-10GD turboprop engine |
| Maximum speed | 300 km/h (186 mph) |
| Operational range | 1,850 km (1,150 mi) |
| Endurance | 27 hours |
| Service ceiling | 15,000 m (49,213 ft) |
United States
Reaper downed over Khomein minutes before a ballistic-missile salvo, Iranian media say; US has not confirmed the loss.
Shot down
United States
IRGC says a Reaper was hit by missile fire over the Strait of Hormuz and fell into the Gulf; no US confirmation.
Shot down
United States
IRGC claimed shootdown near Qeshm Island in Hormozgan province; unconfirmed by US officials.
Shot down
United States
×9
Nine further Reapers lost beyond the individually documented losses; the war total is put at at least 45, about a quarter of the fleet.
Other
United States
Shot down by the IRGC Aerospace Force over the Strait of Hormuz while monitoring shipping on the Omani side of the strait.
Shot down
The General Atomics MQ-9 Reaper is a medium-altitude long-endurance remotely piloted aircraft developed in the United States by General Atomics Aeronautical Systems. Designed primarily as a hunter-killer unmanned aerial vehicle, the aircraft entered evaluation service with the United States Air Force in 2002 and began combat operations in 2007. It is known as the first hunter-killer UAV designed for long-endurance surveillance and strike operations.
Design work began with the Predator B-001 proof-of-concept airframe, designed by Abraham Karem, which first flew on 2 February 2001 with an AlliedSignal Garrett TPE331-10T turboprop. The U.S. Air Force ordered two evaluation prototypes designated YMQ-9 in October 2001 and took delivery in 2002. Production expanded to provide persistent loitering capability over combat areas. As of May 2021, the U.S. Air Force operated over 300 MQ-9 aircraft out of a planned program total of 433 units.
The MQ-9 features a 66-foot wingspan and a 950-shaft-horsepower Honeywell TPE331-10 turboprop engine. Flight operations are controlled remotely from a Ground Control Station by a pilot and sensor operator. Integrated systems include the Raytheon AN/DAS-1 Multi-Spectral Targeting System and Lynx Multi-mode synthetic aperture radar. Trailing-arm landing gear modifications increased gross takeoff weight to 11,700 pounds and supported automated takeoff and landing capability.
The aircraft carries up to 3,800 pounds of payload across seven hardpoints, with 3,000 pounds allocated to external stores. Standard armaments include up to eight AGM-114 Hellfire air-to-ground missiles, GBU-12 Paveway II laser-guided bombs, and GBU-38 Joint Direct Attack Munitions. It can also carry Brimstone missiles, AIM-9 Sidewinders, and external fuel tanks.
The U.S. Air Force activated its first Reaper unit, the 432nd Wing, in May 2007 and conducted its first missile strike in Afghanistan in October 2007. The MQ-9 has seen combat across Iraq, Syria, Libya, Mali, Somalia, and Yemen. Export customers include the United Kingdom, France, Italy, Spain, the Netherlands, India, and Japan. Operational losses include ground destructions and surface-to-air missile shootdowns over Yemen, Libya, and Syria. The heaviest attrition in the type's history came with the war with Iran. US officials told the Washington Post in August 2026 that at least 45 Reapers had been lost since the war began — roughly a quarter of the fleet and more than 1.3 billion dollars of airframes — counting both combat losses and non-combat write-offs, including aircraft that crashed after their control links failed. Losses have been concentrated around the Strait of Hormuz, where the Reaper's low operating altitude and slow cruise leave it exposed to Iranian air defences.
MQ-9 Block 5: Upgraded variant featuring increased electrical power capacity, dual ARC-210 radios, higher gross takeoff weight, and automatic landing capabilities.
Reaper ER: Extended-range version equipped with external fuel tanks, heavy-weight landing gear, and alcohol-water injection to increase endurance to 34 hours.
MQ-9B SkyGuardian: Certifiable variant compliant with NATO STANAG 4671 standards, featuring a 79-foot wingspan, winglets, and over 40 hours of endurance.
SeaGuardian: Maritime variant of the MQ-9B fitted with a 360-degree surface search radar, AIS, and anti-submarine sonobuoy dispenser pods.
Guardian: Maritime surveillance variant operated by U.S. Customs and Border Protection equipped with a SeaVue marine search radar.
A Department of Defense inspector general report on Operation Epic Fury, made public September 15, lists four F-15Es, one A-10, six helicopters, an MQ-4C and as many as 30 MQ-9 Reapers destroyed between February 28 and June 30, 2026, in an operation costed at $33.4 billion.
GlobalMilitary.net has logged 50 US uncrewed aircraft lost in 34 events between January 1 and September 9, 2026, 48 of them MQ-9 Reapers and all attached to the Iran conflict; on September 8 Iran said it had recovered a US Navy underwater drone at the entrance to the Strait of Hormuz.
Lt. Gen. Christopher Niemi, the US Air Force's Chief Modernization Officer, told a Pentagon roundtable on September 3, 2026 that the Massed Modular Aircraft should cost about $10 million per airframe before mission equipment, with an initial fleet of 20 now wanted within roughly three years.
General Atomics has entered a clean-sheet drone called Wildfire into the Pentagon's Massed Modular Aircraft competition to replace the MQ-9 Reaper, a fleet that fell from 231 aircraft to 165 this year after 46 US Reaper losses in the war with Iran.
GlobalMilitary.net's conflict tracker has logged 129 aircraft destroyed since the war began on February 28, 2026. Uncrewed aircraft account for 60 of them, and a single type, the General Atomics MQ-9 Reaper, for 36.
