U.S. Loses More Than a Dozen Reaper Drones in Combat

More than a dozen unmanned MQ-9 Reaper drones have been lost in combat during operations against Iran, two US officials confirmed to ABC News.

The scale of these losses suggests a significant deployment of such unmanned aircraft in US operations against Iran. (Photo: General Atomics Aeronautical Systems)

The drones were either shot down by Iranian missile fire or destroyed on the ground by incoming attacks. Reaper drones can be used for reconnaissance but are also equipped with Hellfire missiles for precision strikes.

The scale of these losses suggests a significant deployment of such unmanned aircraft in US operations against Iran. The losses were first reported by The Wall Street Journal.