US Destroys Its Own MQ-9 Reaper Drone After Emergency Landing in Middle East

The U.S. MQ-9A Reaper drone crashed in the Middle East due to a fuel system malfunction. After the drone made an emergency landing in an undisclosed country, U.S. military personnel destroyed the wreckage to prevent sensitive technology from falling into the wrong hands.

According to a report by the U.S. Air Force aviation mishap investigation board, the incident was caused by damaged wiring in the fuel system, which led to a short circuit and shut down the engine. The crew, operating the drone from Ellsworth Air Force Base in South Dakota, made two unsuccessful attempts to restart the engine while the aircraft was still airborne.

The pilot glided the unmanned aircraft with its engine inoperative for nearly 10 minutes before making a forced landing, during which the landing gear collapsed. The incident occurred while the drone was carrying out a 19-hour mission in the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility.

Because recovering the drone from the landing site was not possible, U.S. special operations forces removed its most sensitive equipment and then destroyed the aircraft in place.

The report states that the incident occurred during the aircraft’s first flight following scheduled maintenance and an engine replacement carried out by civilian contractors from Amentum. However, the investigation board, led by Colonel Brian Desautels, concluded that the maintenance personnel’s engine replacement was not the cause of the wiring damage.

The U.S. Air Force has lost approximately one-quarter of its entire MQ-9 Reaper fleet as a result of the war with Iran.