Tracing the US military's learning curve on fighting Iran's drones: What to know

[mahatmakanejeeves]

Politics
Tracing the US military’s learning curve on fighting Iran’s drones: What to know

By JOSH FUNK and BEN FINLEY
Updated 2:50 PM EDT, March 11, 2026

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Iran war quickly tested America’s ability to combat the swarms of cheap drones that have become a staple of the modern battlefield after Ukraine and Russia demonstrated how effective they could be. ... The Islamic Republic launched so many drones across the region at once that some slipped through the defenses, including a strike that killed six U.S. soldiers at an operations center in Kuwait.

Experts and defense leaders stress that the U.S. military has been able to shoot down the majority of Iran’s drones and take out much of its drone capabilities. But critics said too often missiles that cost millions of dollars were used to down small drones that cost tens of thousands.

The U.S. is bringing an anti-drone system to the Middle East that has been tested in Ukraine, which had proposed a deal with the U.S. last year to offer its drone expertise. Such an agreement is yet to be made, and American forces are facing a steep learning curve as they scramble to deploy more cost-efficient defenses against Iran’s Shahed drones, which fly low and buzz like mopeds before smashing into their targets. ... “We are crushing them — there’s no doubt about it — but if even one drone gets through our defenses and hurts an American, for me, that is enough to warrant fixing the problem,” said drone warfare expert Brett Velicovich, who operated Predator drones in the U.S. Army and co-founded the Power.us drone manufacturing company.

Here’s what to know about Iran’s drones and efforts by the U.S. to shoot them down:

{snip}

JOSH FUNK
Funk is an Associated Press reporter who covers transportation including aviation safety and airlines along with all the major freight railroads. Funk also covers Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway, the impact of the ongoing bird flu outbreak, agriculture and other news out of the Midwest.
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[Bluetus]

1. When we say "cheap drones", it may be important to understand

we are not generally talking about the $500 or $1000 drones you can buy on Amazon. Some of that may be used, mainly for surveillance. But normally "cheap drones" means something more like $20,000, purpose-built for warfare.

They are "cheap" because one $20,000 drone may destroy a $50,000,000 facility. Or it may force the US to shoot several Patriot missiles at $5,000,000 a pop.

We first got exposed to "asymmetric warfare" in Vietnam, where they used guerrilla tactics that were highly effective against our WWII systems and tactics. Now in 2026, asymmetric warfare is $20,000 drones against billion dollar Cold War weapons systems. We can make big booms and kill a lot of people, but we haven't won an asymmetric war, ever.

Another aspect of the asymmetry is the ability to control public opinion. Trump stupidly did nothing to sell this war to the American people. W and Cheney worked hard to sell the Iraq invasion, and when it happened, W's popularity jumped to 70%. This war is a turd with the American public. Trump's ratings are bombing, even before Americans face the worst of the gas prices.

But Iran must be smart. If they unleash terror attacks within the US, this will backfire and cause the American people to say, "Gee, I guess Trump was right. We really do have to kill all the Iranians." So far, the Iranians are playing it smart, much smarter than Trump, but this can change.

[gab13by13]

2. I read an article today

that claims that Russia trained Iran to fly its drones at lower altitudes to avoid being shot down. It appears that Russia is working with Iran to kill Americans and Krasnov just lifted sanctions from Russian oil.