Iran has destroyed approximately $1 billion worth of U.S. Air Force MQ-9 Reaper drones during the ongoing conflict, according to a Bloomberg report published May 21, 2026. The losses represent roughly 20 percent of the Pentagon’s pre-war inventory of the unmanned aerial vehicles, the report stated, citing unnamed officials. Many of the drones were downed by Iranian air defenses while in flight, while others were destroyed on the ground during Iranian missile and drone attacks on U.S. military bases in the Gulf region, according to the report. [1] [2]
The cost of the war on Iran has mounted sharply. A senior Pentagon official told Reuters in May that the total cost had reached up to $29 billion, according to the Bloomberg report. The MQ-9 Reaper, manufactured by General Atomics, is a surveillance and strike platform capable of carrying Hellfire missiles or Joint Direct Attack Munition guided bombs. The report said the U.S. may have lost up to 30 MQ-9 Reapers since the start of hostilities on February 28, a number higher than the 24 cited in a Congressional Research Service report released earlier in May. [1]
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