There was so much confusion after the assassination last night of Qassem Soleimani. It was reported that the rockets that hit the SUVs were Katyusha rockets and that they may have been from a helicopter or a drone or they may have been fired separately altogether. Well now we know that most of that is untrue, that it was actually the military’s latest unmanned drone named the MQ-9 Reaper that took out Soleimani. Here’s a look at the drone itself:
Here’s more on the drone from the NY Post:
With a range of 1,150 miles and the ability to fly at altitudes of 50,000 feet, the MQ-9 Reaper system is an “armed, multi-mission, medium-altitude, long-endurance” remotely piloted aircraft designed primarily for offensive strikes, according to the US Air Force.
“Given its significant loiter time, wide-range sensors, multi-mode communications suite, and precision weapons — it provides a unique capability to perform strike, coordination and reconnaissance against high-value, fleeting, and time-sensitive targets,” a fact sheet reads.
The 4,900-pound drone can also conduct surveillance, assist in search and rescue missions and allow US forces to “conduct irregular warfare operations,” according to the Air Force, which proposed the system in hopes of ramping up military operations overseas.
The Reaper, which became operational in 2007, has a wingspan of 66 feet and a cruising speed of roughly 230 mph.
It’s operated remotely by a pilot and a sensor operator and costs $64.2 million per unit, which includes four aircraft, according to its fact sheet.
As of September 2015, the Air Force had 93 MQ-9 Reaper drones in its arsenal. The aircraft is larger and more robust than its predecessor, the MQ-1 Predator, and is capable of annihilating targets with AGM-114 Hellfire missiles or other munitions.
In a rare public sighting, the MQ-9 was spotted giving a flyover at roughly 800-1000 feet last month at Nellis Air Force Base in southern Nevada, The Aviationist reports.
“It was nearly silent,” the website reported. “The flyover, the first of its kind at Nellis, sent a collective shiver up air show viewers’ spines. It was a significant acknowledgment of the rapidly evolving and expanding role of Remotely Piloted Aircraft in the US Air Force.”
Note that the description suggests the drone uses “AGM-114 Hellfire missiles” or other munitions. We don’t know exactly which payload the drone last night was carrying, but I’m pretty sure it was not Katyusha rockets.
If you want to know more about the MQ-9 Reaper, here’s a video on it from November of last year: