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Air Force

MQ-9 Strikes in Iran Far Outnumber Those of Other Platforms, USAF Chief Says

Frank Wolfe

Wednesday, May 20th, 2026

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MQ-9 Strikes in Iran Far Outnumber Those of Other Platforms, USAF Chief Says

Pictured is a U.S. Air Force photo of a 432nd Wing's MQ-9A Reaper at Creech AFB, Nev. on May 22, 2025.

The number of air to ground strikes in Iran by U.S. Air Force MQ-9A Reapers by General Atomics has far outstripped that by any other aircraft, U.S. Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Kenneth Wilsbach said on Wednesday. "For Epic Fury, perhaps the most valuable player was unmanned--the MQ-9," Wilsbach told a House Armed Services Committee (HASC) hearing on the Department of the Air Force's fiscal 2027 budget. "We've made many, many strikes. I don't want to say how many…

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