From Raven to Coyote: How Many Military Drones Does the US Have?

Moscow expects Washington to stop flights near Russia's borders, Anatoly Antonov, Russia’s Ambassador to the US, stated after an American drone crash incident took place over the Black Sea.

The Russian Defense Ministry said the MQ-9 drone fell in the Black Sea as a result of engaging in sharp maneuvering and the Russian fighter jets sent to intercept the US unmanned aerial vehicle did not come into contact with it, nor did they used= weapons against the drone. Now the question arises what the US drone did in the Black Sea and more generally, why are the UAVs being used by the US army? Sputnik explores.

The US military operates a large number of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), which are also known as Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS).

According to the US Department of Defense (DoD) estimates, the Pentagon “currently operates more than 11,000 UAS in support of domestic training events and overseas contingency missions.”

With the DoD remaining tight-lipped on modifications, a US media outlet reported that the US army’s drone fleet comprises at least 14 main UAVs, including

Also in service are such drones as Maveric, Stalker, ScanEagle, Switchblade, Coyote, and Phoenix Ghost.

The RQ-4 Global Hawk is believed to be the US military's biggest unmanned aerial vehicle. The drone has a length of 47.6 feet (about 15 meters), a wingspan of just over 130 feet (39 meters), and a total weight of more than six tons.

The UAV, which made its maiden flight in February 1998, conducted an array of surveillance missions across the world, including the Ukraine flyover ahead of Russia’s special military there.

Many believe that the MQ-25 Stingray is the US army’s most sophisticated drone, which first flew on September 19, 2019.

The drone, which is powered by a Rolls-Royce turbofan engine, features a stealthy fuselage shaping.

The first use of US armed UAVs dates back to 2001, when an MQ-1 Predator was used to carry anti-tank missiles into Afghanistan, a mission that was controlled by the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA).

Until 2006, US drones’ flight hours were not logged, though the DoD now claims that the UAVs have already flown millions of hours.

Apart from intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance missions, the US drones are currently capable of implementing other tasks, according to the Pentagon. These include electronic attacks, drone strikes, suppression or destruction of enemy air defenses, as well as combat search and rescue.

Both the US military and the CIA also use drones as part of conventional fighting in war zones. They use the UAVs to conduct targeted killings of individuals who they say are suspected of terrorism.