U.S. Lacks of Warheads for Strike Drones in the Middle East

The United States is launching Scorpion Strike and creating the first LUCAS drone squadron, which will be based in the Middle East, although the project is currently facing some equipment challenges.

These drones are modeled on Iran’s Shahed drones, used by Russia and Iran, but are an American version made from cheaper components, Forbes reported.

The Pentagon intends for the LUCAS drones to deliver large-scale, swarm-style attacks similar to those used by Russia, allowing the U.S. to respond to threats from Iran and other adversaries.

However, Forbes notes that the drones presented by CENTCOM do not yet have warheads – tests are still being conducted only with dummy payloads.

A U.S. Army report explicitly states that a warhead for the LUCAS system has not yet been created, and its production is only in the planning stage.

The tests are being conducted at the Yuma Proving Ground in Arizona, but so far without real target strikes or evaluation of explosive capabilities.

Technical data indicates that LUCAS is closer to the smaller, less powerful Shahed-131 than to the more powerful Shahed-136, which dominates Russia’s attacks.

Even if serial production begins, the striking power of LUCAS will be lower and its range shorter than those of the Russian or Iranian counterparts.

Under the contract, the U.S. may receive about 850 of these drones – a small number compared to the 5,400 Shaheds launched by Russia just last month.

American drones still require mass production, proper warheads, and further improvements to perform real strike missions.

Forbes emphasizes that the U.S. is taking an important step toward building large-scale strike-drone forces, but Scorpion, so far, looks more like a demonstration than a fully operational combat system.

The United States recently announced that it has deployed LUCAS combat drones in the Middle East.