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Audio of this article is brought to you by the Air & Space Forces Association, honoring and supporting our Airmen, Guardians, and their families. Find out more at afa.org

The notion that an MQ-9 Reaper unmanned aerial vehicle is comparable to the F-16, but at far less cost—offered in some recent press reports—is absolutely wrong, per Gen. Ronald Keys, head of Air Combat Command. Keys told Air Force Magazine in an interview Friday that Reapers will do beautifully in an environment where enemy air defenses either don’t exist or have been beaten down, in which case “you could get rid of your F-16s.” However, they can’t attack enemy air defenses, can’t penetrate, can’t dogfight, can’t carry a large bomb load, and can’t go fast—all attributes that are necessary for any kind of major fight.

Audio of this article is brought to you by the Air & Space Forces Association, honoring and supporting our Airmen, Guardians, and their families. Find out more at afa.org