The United States Air Force has intensified the use of MQ-9A Reaper drones in the Caribbean, with aircraft operating from Puerto Rico equipped with up to ten AGM-114 Hellfire missiles.
Recent images show different armament configurations, ranging between six and ten missiles, as well as external fuel tanks and Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance pods, indicating missions that combine long range and offensive capabilities.
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The highlight was the records made at the end of December, when Reaper were photographed with eight and, later, ten Hellfires, surpassing the operational mark previously observed in tests carried out in 2020.
The adoption of M299 and M310 launchers allows greater flexibility in the distribution of weapons under the wings, maintaining external sensors and fuel, which reinforces the role of the MQ-9 as a persistent attack platform combined with real-time information collection.
The increased presence of armed drones occurs in a context of strong concentration of US military assets in the Caribbean, with Puerto Rico consolidating itself as an important center for the Air Force Special Operations Command. This movement accompanies the largest US naval presence in the region in decades and frequent flights of combat aircraft and strategic bombers, increasing military pressure around Venezuela.
Source: The Aviationist | Photo: @MichaelBonet8 | This content was created with the help of AI and reviewed by the editorial team
And a few days later we have now beat that record with a total of 10x AGM-114 Hellfires on a single unit.
Armed with a pair of 4x racks and a single 2x rack. pic.twitter.com/L1YauZlk4u
— SA Defensa (@SA_Defensa) December 27, 2025
BQN morning updates 10:38am 12/24/2025. pic.twitter.com/XZaJqtt6ii
— Michael Bonet 🇵🇷 (@MichaelBonet8) December 24, 2025
