Houthi rebels have shot down 7 US Reaper drones worth $200 million in
recent weeks
[April 25, 2025]
By LOLITA C. BALDOR
WASHINGTON (AP) — Houthi rebels in Yemen have shot down seven U.S.
Reaper drones in less than six weeks, a loss of aircraft worth more than
$200 million in what is becoming the most dramatic cost to the Pentagon
of the military campaign against the Iran-backed militants.
According to defense officials, three of the drones were shot down in
the past week — suggesting the militants' targeting of the unmanned
aircraft flying over Yemen has improved. The drones were doing attack
runs or conducting surveillance, and they crashed both into the water
and onto land, said the officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity
to discuss military operations.
The U.S. has increased its attacks on the Houthis, launching daily
strikes since March 15, when President Donald Trump ordered a new,
expanded campaign. He promised to use “overwhelming lethal force” until
the Houthis cease their attacks on shipping along a vital maritime
corridor.
Central Command spokesman Dave Eastburn said Thursday night that the
U.S. has struck more than 800 Houthi targets. “These strikes have
destroyed multiple command-and-control facilities, air defense systems,
advanced weapons manufacturing facilities, advanced weapons storage
locations, and killed hundreds of Houthi fighters and numerous Houthi
leaders,” Eastburn said.
Another defense official said that although hostile fire is likely the
cause of the drone losses, the incidents are still under investigation.
The official noted that the increase in U.S. strikes can add to the risk
to aircraft, but said the U.S. will take every measure possible to
protect troops, equipment and interests in the region. The official
spoke on condition of anonymity to comment on sensitive military issues.
The sophisticated drones, built by General Atomics, cost about $30
million each, and generally fly at altitudes of more than 40,000 feet
(12,100 meters). Houthis leaders have consistently touted the strikes in
public statements. One of the defense officials said the U.S. lost
Reaper drones on March 31 and on April 3, 9, 13, 18, 19 and 22.
U.S. senators, meanwhile, are raising concerns about civilian casualties
caused by the American strikes in Yemen. Democratic Sens. Chris Van
Hollen of Maryland, Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts and Tim Kaine of
Virginia wrote to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Thursday questioning
whether the Trump administration is “abandoning the measures necessary
to meet its obligations to reducing civilian harm.”
Specifically, they questioned reports that U.S. strikes at the Ras Isa
fuel terminal in Yemen last week potentially killed more than 70
civilians.
“Military leaders agree that ingraining civilian harm mitigation
practices within U.S operations leads to better outcomes and that
civilian casualties actually undermine the mission that the military has
been sent in to do,” their letter said.
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Houthi supporters chant slogans during a weekly, anti-U.S. and
anti-Israel rally in Sanaa, Yemen, Friday, April 18, 2025. (AP
Photo/Osamah Abdulrahman)
In addition to downing the drones, the Houthis have been
persistently firing missiles and one-way attack drones at U.S.
military ships in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden. They haven't hit
any.
The U.S. has been using an array of warships, fighter jets, bombers
and drones to strike the Houthis, and aircraft can now launch from
two Navy carriers in the region.
Hegseth decided in March to beef up the Navy warship presence in the
Middle East, ordering the USS Harry S. Truman to extend its
deployment there, as the USS Carl Vinson steamed toward the area.
The Truman, along with two of the destroyers and a cruiser in its
strike group, is now in the Red Sea. And the Vinson, along with two
destroyers and a cruiser, is in the Gulf of Aden.
The third destroyer assigned to the Truman is in the Mediterranean
Sea. And two other U.S. Navy destroyers are in the Red Sea, but
aren't part of the Truman's group.
Hegseth is weighing whether to grant a request by U.S. Central
Command to once again extend the Truman's deployment. A decision to
do that could keep the Truman and at least some of its strike group
in the region for several more weeks.
It has been rare in recent years for the U.S. to have two aircraft
carriers in the Middle East at the same time. Navy leaders have
generally been opposed to the idea because it disrupts ship
maintenance schedules and delays time at home for sailors strained
by the unusually high combat tempo.
Last year, the Biden administration ordered the USS Dwight D.
Eisenhower aircraft carrier to remain in the Red Sea for an extended
time, as U.S. warships waged the most intense running sea battle
since World War II.
Prior to that it had been years since the U.S. had committed that
much warship power to the Middle East.
The Houthis have been waging persistent missile and drone attacks
against commercial and military ships in the region in what the
group's leadership has described as an effort to end the Israeli war
against Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
From November 2023 until this January, the Houthis targeted more
than 100 merchant vessels with missiles and drones, sinking two of
them and killing four sailors. That has greatly reduced the flow of
trade through the Red Sea corridor, which typically sees $1 trillion
of goods move through it annually.
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