What is the price of the American MQ-9 Reaper drone, shot down in the Black Sea. The device costs a fortune

Author: Redactia a1.ro |
Published: Thursday, March 16, 2023, 11:40 am
Updated: Thursday, March 16, 2023, 12:03 p.m

The downing of the MQ-9 Reaper drone, following a collision with a Russian plane, is likely to cost the US military several million dollars. Here’s how much it costs.

The United States military strongly condemned Russian pilots after a Russian jet shot down an MQ-9 Reaper drone flying over the Black Sea on Tuesday, March 14, 2023.

Many have wondered what the potential cost of a new MQ-9 Reaper drone is, should the military opt to replace the downed drone.

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What is the price of the MQ-9 Reaper drone

The MQ-9 Reaper drone has been in use by US military personnel since 2007. The MQ-9 is a UAV, a term many have heard in video games such as Call Of Duty, which is short for Unmanned Ariel Vehicle, which it means that its journeys are controlled remotely, without the need for a pilot on board.

MQ-9s are heavy aircraft that are intended to be used strictly for military operations. Newer models of the Reaper can reportedly fire multiple missiles 0.32 seconds apart and fly unmanned for up to 40 hours.

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In March 2021, the US Air Force stated that the unit price of an MQ-9 Reaper is $56.5 million, for a package that includes “four sensor aircraft, ground control station and Predator Primary satellite link “. Not surprising given the speed of the aircraft and the rapid rate of fire.

In April 2021, the US Department of Defense gave the Australian government an estimated $1.651 billion when asked about buying 12 MQ-9 Reapers, along with the necessary equipment.

In 2020, the US expressed a desire to replace the MQ-9 drones starting in 2030, hoping to use a newer model that could use artificial intelligence, according to Hitc.

Russia wants the drone back, and the US claims there is no more data on it

The Secretary of the Russian Security Council Nikolai Patrushev announced on Wednesday, March 15, 2023, that Russia will try to recover the wreckage of the drone. Russia’s goal is to get hold of the data obtained by the US military, but its officials say they will find nothing.

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The United States remotely wiped sensitive software on board the U.S. MQ-9 Reaper drone before it crashed into the Black Sea in an effort to prevent Russia from gathering classified information, two U.S. officials said. CNN.

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The software was deleted after the drone encountered two Russian Sukhoi 27 (Su-27) fighter jets.

Russian jets dumped fuel in front of a US surveillance drone on Tuesday, after which one of them collided with the drone, damaging its propeller and prompting the United States to sink it in the Black Sea, according to the News.