Which symbol of pride for the US military industry was brought down by Yemen?
The Lebanese newspaper Al-Akhbar discussed the achievements of the Yemeni armed forces in the war against the American occupiers and wrote that Washington believes that the success of Yemen’s Ansarullah in shooting down 21 MQ-9 drones with multiple missions since October 2023 is a serious threat to the US Air Force, which considers itself the best air force in the world.
In this regard, deep disputes have taken place in US defense and media circles regarding the current situation, and of course, none of these disputes have reached a specific result for getting out of the Yemeni quagmire.
While US President Donald Trump’s policy is based on creating intimidation and terror among the country’s enemies to force them to retreat and make concessions, the situation in Yemen looks completely different, and the Americans have failed to achieve their desired goals by threatening to use force and even using their force and power in massive air strikes.
According to this article, on the other side of this equation are the Yemeni Ansarullah and the country’s armed forces, who seem to have turned the recent attacks by the Americans into an opportunity to expand their capabilities at the command, tactics, and situation control levels, thereby increasing their experience in producing indigenous systems, some of which have been used and exploited for the first time during this war, and the gaps in their functionality have been urgently corrected.
Overall, according to the American side, Yemeni air defense systems have managed to withstand the technological superiority of the United States. The US Central Command estimates the number of attacks by the country on Yemen at 750, while Yemeni statements have stated these attacks at 900. Nevertheless, the Yemenis have shown great power to shoot down American aircraft, especially MQ-9 drones, which proves that they are seeking to increase their power in protecting their airspace.
Sayyid Abdul Malik al-Houthi, the leader of Yemen’s Ansarullah movement, recently announced that Yemeni forces had managed to disable part of the US air force. This announcement came after 11 US airstrikes were intercepted and neutralized using Yemeni indigenous air defense systems. These operations even included intercepting US stealth aircraft flying at very high altitudes.
In this regard, the American news network “NBC” confirmed the Ansarullah leader’s positions and announced in a report that Ansarullah still controls Yemeni airspace. This report was published after 3 US MQ-9 drones were shot down in Yemeni airspace over a week.
The Yemeni air defense operation has raised many doubts about the course of the US attacks and the possibility of continuing these attacks in their current form.
In this regard, the American television network CNN quoted the country’s officials as saying that the Yemenis’ success in shooting down 7 drones was a major obstacle in moving to the second phase of the operation in Yemen. The Americans thought that by achieving their air superiority within 30 days and weakening the Yemeni air force, they could start a new phase based on collecting accurate information and targeting senior leaders of the Ansarullah movement.
These American commanders considered the MQ-9 drones to be the most suitable equipment for carrying out this mission, but the successive shooting down of these drones has caused the United States trouble. American officials admit that the Yemenis have taken the initiative in attacking American drones and that the continuation of this trend will reduce the success rate of Washington in destroying Yemeni weapons. These officials add that American forces are forced to use this type of drone because the intelligence information available in the current situation is the basis for determining the weapons required for operations.
The mission of the MQ-9 drones is not limited to gathering intelligence and supporting air strikes and coordination, but these drones are the most important attack drones in the US Air Force, which are assigned many combat missions while conducting intelligence and reconnaissance patrols. These drones can fly over long distances and at altitudes above 15 km, and at the same time are equipped with very powerful sensors and highly advanced communication systems with multiple functions and a set of precision weapons.