An MQ-9 Reaper drone flying over Leeuwarden, Netherlands, in April 2025. The US Air Force is using the Reaper as a testbed for a new low-cost anti-drone missile. (Shutterstock/VanderWolf Images)

The MQ-9 Reaper Drone Is Getting Deadly New Anti-Drone Rockets

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Reaper drones could be used as a counter-drone platform in the future, given their low operating costs and long loiter times.

The US Air Force and General Atomics recently completed testing of the MQ-9A Reaper with Advanced Precision Kill Weapons System (APKWS) laser-guided rockets at the Nevada Test and Training Range near Nellis Air Force Base (AFB), Nevada.

The testing, described by the Air Force as successful, included a variety of targets.

“The demonstration featured multiple types and variations of shot profiles, including aerial targets,” Reaper drone manufacturer General Atomics wrote in a media release. “All shots were executed flawlessly by the MQ-9A crews.”

The weapon used in the tests was the APKWS II / AGR-20, a laser-guided version of the Hydra 70 rocket........

© The National Interest