Reaper Debuts In Iraqi Combat Patrols

The US Air Force's newest hunter-killer drone made it's Iraqi combat debut on July 18 as it slides into the routine patrol duty typically assigned to F-16s. The MQ-9 Reaper (formerly known as the Predator B) saw its first combat in Afghanistan last fall and quickly garnered respect for its capabilities. The British in Afghanistan even call the 5-ton Unmanned Combat Aerial Vehicle (UCAV) a "mini A-10." Defense Secretary Robert Gates' mandate to get "more surveillance systems into the fight" was a driving force in the Reaper's Iraqi deployment. By May of this year the Air Force had drones in 24 round-the-clock orbits to support the "War On Terror" and they anticipate meeting a goal of 50 orbits by year's end. There are only about a dozen Reapers in service now, so I'm not sure how they'll reach that number unless they deploy more Predators or other UAVs.


Essentially a Predator on steroids, the Reaper exceeds its predecessor in every way. Instead of a piston engine, the Reaper has a 600 shp turboprop pushing this killer to 200 kts, up a 130 kts from the Predator's top speed, giving it the ability to take out more time sensitive targets. The beefier engine also allows for a nastier payload of weaponry. Where as the Predator could only carry two Hellfire missiles, the Reaper can carry four...plus two laser-guided Paveway II bombs or two GPS guided JDAMs making this one mean robot warrior. And if the enemy is not out to play, no problem. The Reaper can loiter for quite some time up there at 50,000 feet. It has a range of 3,200 nautical miles. Each Reaper costs the Air Force $53 million a pop and it can be remotely operated by a pilot and sensor operator far from the actual fighting.



(Danger Room)

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