US Drone Allegedly Targets Iraqi Militia

In a story first reported by the Associated Press, two Iraqi militia officials made an interesting claim. The pair, who wanted to remain anonymous, stated an American drone blew up a truck used by an Iran-backed militia. Furthermore, they state the strike occurred in Eastern Syria on Sunday.The drone allegedly fired a warning shot at the vehicle. As a result, the driver leapt out and fled the scene. Officials claim the drone subsequently rocked the truck with a missile. Causing it to explode.However, they would not elaborate on what was inside the truck. Although, they indicated there were no casualties in the incident. The US military has yet to make a comment regarding the matter.Syrian state TV claimed the trucks were merely carrying food, but corroborated there were no deaths. The Britain-based opposition war monitor, named Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, stated the truck was carrying ammunition & weapons. Furthermore, that it was heading towards an Iraqi militia. There are currently several hundred US troops in eastern Syria.

American drones in Iraqi conflicts

Although the aforementioned reports have not been confirmed, it may have been an MQ-1 Predator Drone. The price tag for this comes in around a whopping $4 million dollars each. That number greatly varies depending on the age of the resource cited. The Air Force states the unit cost as, "$20 million (includes four aircraft with sensors, ground control station and Predator Primary satellite link) (fiscal 2009 dollars)"They first were introduced by General Atomics on July 1st 1995. The drones are 27 feet long, and weigh 1,130lbs empty. They can carry 665lbs of fuel and have a maximum take off weight of 2,250lbs. This leaves about 450lbs for the payload of munitions. The MQ-1 has a range of 770 miles, and a celling of up to 25,000 feet. Furthermore, they have a top speed of up to 135 mph.Stay tuned to American Grit for more news, stories and updates. Also check out Video: See the DOD approved drone that is AI enabled