USAF Reaper drones will get a big update to deal with new type of threat
The United States Air Force (USAF) has announced plans to update its Reaper drones in a way that makes them more capable against ‘near-peer’ threats. The plan comes from the USAF’s Life Cycle Management Center, specifically its MQ-9 Program Office, which explains that the mission behind the drone platform is ‘shifting’ from one aimed at addressing extremist groups to one that may need to address near-peer threats.
The MQ-9 ‘Reaper’ is a fixed-wing AI-powered drone that was designed to deal with what the USAF calls Counter-Violent Extremist Organization (C-VEO) combat situations. However, things are changing and the Air Force sees a different growing need for its unmanned drone fleet, one that revolves not around extremists but rather ‘near-peer’ threats.