In the sky of Yemen, and late on Thursday night in May, the strongest US Army’s “M-9 Ribery” was flying quietly in an attempt to monitor any activity that might pose a threat to the American forces.
Suddenly, the sirens were launched in a remote control center for the American army, after the operators monitored a surface-to-air missile launched it Houthis To target the American plane, and it is only moments until the missile hit its target, and the manager crashed and fell on the land of Yemen.
Later, the Houthis published night scenes showing the moment of targeting the running, and parts of them are burning, while smoke from the boundary debris was escalated. This was one of the seven Mi-9 Riber planes that the Houthis shot down from the sky of Yemen since mid-March, which represented a shocking rise. For the United States In the percentage of the most powerful luminous plane you possess, which was until recently considered to be targeted aircraft.
The repetition of these events at an accelerated pace that prompted some analysts to open the door for discussion about an imminent change in the balance of air capabilities, and this discussion is due to a feasibility question of this type of drones high price and the heavy losses, as the cost of each is estimated at about 30 million dollars.
After the METIMIDE LONG-EndURANECE-a pivotal element in US air operations, was now facing growing challenges in an atmosphere that is witnessing intense use of air defense systems, and we are talking about the Houthis, who do not possess Defense systems are comparable to, for example, what Russia or China possesses.
Days of glory
The story of the Mi-9 Riber plane began when the United States needed to develop a more efficient alternative than its previous version, “Mi-1 Bardaor”, a version that represented the beginning of the use of the drones to carry out accurate strikes from remoteness during the American invasion For Afghanistan And Iraq.
At the end of the first decade of the second millennium, the Mi-9 Riber plane appeared with more accurate techniques in monitoring, monitoring and surveillance operations, as well as search and rescue tasks, as well as its ability to direct precise ground strikes, as the plane was provided with missile launch platforms.
The M-Q-9 Riber is characterized by advanced armament capabilities that make it one of the most prominent drones in modern fighting fields, as they are able to carry up to 8 laser-guided missiles, in addition to 16 AGM-114 Hilefire missiles.
The plane can also fly for a distance of more than one thousand kilometers without the need to refuel, and work in harsh weather conditions for more than 24 continuous hours. The M-9 Riber march can fly at a height of up to 50 thousand feet, and its top speed exceeds 300 km/h.
The M-9 Riber running is a streamlined structure and engineering design that reflects its high efficiency in the implementation of multiple weather tasks, and is about 11 meters long, and its wings extend at a width of 20 meters, while its height from Earth reaches the maximum point in its structure to 3.8 meters. The enlightening weighs without a load inside about 2.2 tons, while the maximum combat load that can fly it is about 1700 kilograms, which allows it to carry a variety of ammunition.
Rising threats
In the past period, Riber’s running allowed a high ability to accurately track the targets, with the possibility of influential and effective air strikes. For example, during one of the chapters of the American war on Afghanistan, this plane carried out about 480 sorties, equivalent to 3800 flying hours within just ten months between 2007-2008. In 2017, a report of the “Guardian” newspaper described the plane as a symbol of “low -cost war and far from the direct clash in the battlefield.”
However, as is the nature of things, no technical superiority in the face of time stands out, as the nature of modern fighting fields changes steadily, which enables “opponents” to develop their defensive tools and change previous engagement equations. Following this new reality, the MM9 Riber is no longer fortified, and the regular forces and armed groups can use radars to monitor them and then launch surface-to-air missiles capable of being injured.
In connection with the size of the “Riber” running, which has previously been considered a strength of it with its high capabilities, it is itself its weakness today, as its relatively huge size increases the ability to monitor and target it.
In 2024, attempts to handle the weaknesses of “Mi-9 Riber”, as forces provided them with troops Marines The American with electronic containers can disturb or deceive enemy radars, in an attempt to give these planes a “ghost cloak” that makes them able to hide. However, the recent targeting of this plane in the sky of Yemen proved that these partial solutions were not effective in limiting the ability to monitor and drop them.
Candided losses
The war with the drones were described as a less expensive option materially, but the loss of the Mi-9 Riber plane narrates a different story, costing it about $ 30 million, as we indicated, making the fall of each plane a painful blow that is not easily lost.
Experts estimate that the number of planes that fell over Yemen Since late 2023, about 15 aircraft, equivalent to half a billion dollars or more. For comparison, the F-35 fighter cost about $ 90 million.
The most bitter American, that these losses came to relatively modest air defenses, which gives American officials an indication of what may happen when facing a more advanced opponent.
The loss does not stop at the limits of the numbers. Every aircraft plane falls, which means losing the field awareness of the military intelligence services and the American army, as the “Riber” crew provides a live video coverage on wide ranges, giving the US Central Command vital data for targeting.
As for more fears in WashingtonIt is for the Houthis to use the remaining wreckage of the plane, with Iranian, Chinese and Russian support, to analyze the equipment used in the formation of the plane, and then develop their knowledge of sensitive techniques manufactured by advanced technologies with advanced technologies.
For this, the experts began explicitly wondering: Is Riber worth this risk? Where one of the analyzes stated that the assessments in Ukraine indicate that the financial limit that the drone becomes consumable is less than 200 thousand dollars per one in monitoring and reconnaissance missions, so how if the cost reaches 30 million dollars per one?
New attention
In the wars that extend from Kyiv until GazaThe fighting fronts are flooded by swarms of low -priced aircraft. in Ukraine Only, the Ukrainian army announced the manufacture of 2.2 million small drones for combat purposes, along with 100,000 larger -sized aircraft during 2024.
These aircraft, whose prices range between 500 – 3000 dollars per one, use a suicide weapon directed at a distance, and these weapons were able to destroy tanks, artillery and bridges, which was not achieved by aircraft reconnaissance aircraft that costs one of 30 million dollars.
Those low -cost systems enable the operator to sacrifice them easily, a new trend in military operations that aims to reduce expenditures, so why are a fighter plane risk a fighter plane costing 30 million dollars, while a four -way helicopter plane – costs $ 5,000 – or a suicide bomber to achieve the same impact, or a close effect at the very least?
In fact, a sparkle began to surpass the “Riber” running for a while, and its repercussions in military policies were shown. In Washington, senior Air Force leaders actually expressed this new trend, the US Army’s budget has stopped the purchase of MQ-Next, but the features of this future platform are still mysterious.
What wars do we do, that every military option adopted by a party to achieve specific purposes requires some concessions on the other hand; The ghost running aircraft will be able to carry out advanced and advanced tasks that may not be achieved by the less -sized and costly drones, but their high cost in return will make their loss a heavy burden, while the cheapest running aircraft compels to waive the length of the range that the plane can reach or the size of the load that it can contain, and the compound operations that can be managed Advanced implementation.
Perhaps this is what prompted China To try to develop “Gytian” platformThe fifth generation offensive plane is designed to carry hundreds of smaller drones in its hollow. Based on theoretical targets of this plane, which has not yet been activated in the fields of fighting, it will provide for the advanced capabilities of the drones along with the launch of cheap drones from their hollow to achieve tactical military purposes, such as suicide operations, to protect the largest drone itself.
The Chinese Jiu Tian unmanned aircraft carrier, designed with a unique honeycomb structure, began combat duty in June 2025.pic.twitter.com/cKyvWsFFve
— Zhang Meifang (@CGMeifangZhang) May 18, 2025
Essential
This new shift is following him NATO Alliance And its partners closely. For example, in 2024 it was canceled Britain The Watchkeeper project, which is a plane of the category of “medium altitudes and long endurance capabilities”, caused the delay in its production and the technical problems and technical challenges associated with manufacturing operations in the project stopping after less than seven years of launch.
In the corridors of the US Congress, the Pentagon’s deputies have increased, in conjunction with the questions that are being asked in the military circles as we mentioned earlier in the report. And these questions, before: Is it glorified to arm the allies with Mi-9 Riber aircraft, which are subject to drop? How many “Riber” aircraft can Washington lose before its strategy is reviewed? Is it worthy to continue making aircraft with a cost of each of $ 30 million, while small and suicide bombers excel with their abundance and licenses?
Here it should be noted that the decline in the position of “Riber” is no longer just an operational detail, but it may be an indication of a fundamental shift in the philosophy of wars and air control.
On the one hand, this change seems inevitable, as this plane was designed to serve in a relatively calm atmosphere during the era of what America called “war on terror”, and the weakness of this war in terms of their defensive capabilities, which is the reality of a change today towards a more fierce and complicated formula.
On the other hand, this transformation embodies an indication of the importance of the economic dimension in wars and the importance of this that the manufacturer does not become exhausted in the arms industry.
In conclusion, the greatest shift in the wars of this century is highlighted, given that the abundance of cheap weapons and the ease of sacrifice it represents superiority elements.