Iran downed at least two unmanned American aircraft in recent days, US officials say

Iran's forces have reportedly brought down a minimum of two U.S. MQ-1 autonomous aircraft recently, according to sources familiar with the situation, who spoke to CBS News anonymously due to lack of authorization to address the public. The precise location of these remote-controlled aircraft's crash site remains unknown, as does the specific type of MQ-1 variant involved.

The U.S. military operates two primary MQ-1 versions: the Predator, previously a common presence in U.S. operations in Iraq and Afghanistan before its retirement in 2018, and the Gray Eagle, a larger aircraft also derived from the Predator, still in use by the Army, including its special operations forces. Both types were intended for intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance missions, though they are also capable of carrying Hellfire missiles for targeted strikes.

In the Strait of Hormuz, these unmanned vehicles offer persistent surveillance capabilities over the narrow waterway, monitoring Iranian military activities and assessing threats to both U.S. forces and commercial shipping. Should the downed aircraft have been the older Air Force MQ-1 Predators, which have largely been phased out, their loss could be valued at approximately $8 million in total.

Gray Eagles, depending on the variant, can be significantly more expensive, potentially reaching tens of millions of dollars. Since the U.S. initiated its conflict with Iran, at least 24 MQ-9 Reapers have been lost, amounting to an estimated value of roughly $720 million, as reported by the Congressional Budget Office this week.

The report also noted the destruction of an MQ-4C Triton, a loss amounting to around $150 million. U.S. Central Command, the U.S. military branch responsible for operations against Iran, refrained from providing further comment to CBS News on Thursday.