JOINT BASE BALAD, Iraq -- An MQ-9 Reaper remotely piloted aircraft takes off from Joint Base Balad, Iraq, July 17. The Reaper can loiter over battlefields or targets for hours at a time without refueling and carries up to 3,750 pounds of laser-guided munitions, giving ground commanders unprecedented situational awareness and the ability to bring the right amount of force to bear on a target. The Reaper, deployed from Creech Air Force Base, Nev., flew its first combat mission over Iraq July 18.
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The General Atomics MQ-9 Reaper is an unmanned aerial vehicle capable of remote controlled or autonomous flight operations, developed by General Atomics Aeronautical Systems primarily for the United States Air Force.