6,989 views|Aug 19, 2020,06:32am EDT
Reported Loss Of Two U.S. MQ-9 Reapers In Syria Raises Troubling Questions
David Hambling
Military Times today quotes a defense official reporting that two U.S. drones were lost over Syria following a collision on Tuesday. Unconfirmed pictures from the event indicate that at least one was an MQ-9 Reaper, an expensive, top-end drone used by the U.S. Air Force and CIA for strikes against insurgents. Military site TheDrive reports that two Reapers were lost in the incident.
Confusion surrounds the event, with some sources reporting that militants opposed to Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad had shot down at least one drone with a surface-to-air missile. Military Times speculate that a damaged drone may have been shot at after the collision. However, it is unclear why forces who are in theory allied with the U.S. would shoot down an American drone, or even whether they have the capability to do so.
https://www.forbes.com/sites/davidhambling/2020/08/19/two-us-mq-9-reaper-drones-reportedly-lost-in-syria-after-collision/#23fa4d022270
