In the late hours of March 14, the Yemeni Air Defense Force [loyal to the Houthis] announced that it had shoot down an MQ-1C Gray Eagle unmanned combat aerial vehicle (UAV) over the Yemeni capital of Sanaa.
“The UCAV was shoot down with a suitable missile,” a source in the Yemeni Air Defense Force told the Houthis media wing.
The MQ-1C, which entered service in 2009, has an endurance of 25 hours. The UCAV can be armed with four AGM-114 Hellfire or four GBU-44/B Viper Strike guided glide bombs for combat missions. The U.S. Army and intelligence are the only known operators of this UCAV.
The Houthis media wing released on May 15 a video confirming that the UCAV was shoot down with a surface-to-air missile. The Houthis possess several types of man-portable air-defense systems (MANPADS). However, large drones like the Grey Eagle are usually shot down with modified air-to-air missiles, such as Soviet-made, infrared-guided R-27T and R-73E.
Last March, the Yemeni Air Defense Force shoot down an MQ-1 Predator unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) over Sanaa with a similar missile. The Predator was developed into the more modern Gray Eagle.
The downing of the Grey Eagle UCAV proves that the capabilities of the Houthis’ air defense force are growing. This will pose a major challenge not only to the Saudi-led coalition, but also to its main backer, the U.S. Army.
it appears lately the houthis are getting a lot of help in equipment and they put them in good use.
I’ve noticed that also , but either their help is some of the best in world (Due to the blockades ) or they themselves have figured out their things (Like germany pre+1945) when humans need to fight in desperation they will find many ways to innovate. (Rhodesia in the bush war) Lastly remember Yemen has practically been at war for most of its recent history, so that also helps.
they dont have the industry and the set up to produce what they been using lately no matter how good fighters they are, we are talking technology.
read my reply above…that will help to understand
Good info , bit what about when they run out of those soviet missiles ?
short Explanation for u, on the missles of the houthis…….they are not from Iran and they dont get any arms from Iran..they dont Need them as i will Show u…..
Two-thirds of Yemen’s troops left government service and joined the Houthis in 2014 and 2015. They apparently took with them: Soviet-made V-755 surface-to-air missiles originally developed by the Soviets for the S-75 Dvina/SA-2 Guideline surface-to-air missile system. Yemen acquired 964 V-755s in the 1970s and 1980s. The Houthis have used them in a surface-to-surface mode under the designations Qaher-1, Qaher-2 and Qaher-2M. OTR-21 Tochka/SS-21 Scarab surface-to-surface missiles. Originally developed by the Soviets and delivered to the former South Yemen in the 1980s, at least 60 of the missiles remained as of 2015. R-17/R-300 Elbrus/SS-1C Scud-B surface-to-surface missiles that the Soviets delivered to former North and South Yemen in the 1970s and 1980s. Up to 100 R-17s were still in the Yemeni inventory as of 2015. Hwasong-6. A stretched variant of the R-17 with a downsized warhead to enable longer range, at least 20 copies of this North Korean missile were delivered to Yemen in the late 1990s and early 2000s. Since mid-2015, the Houthis’ Missile Research and Development Center has built several local copies of R-17s and Hwasong-6s. These are designated Burkan-1 and Burkan-2/2H. The rebels launched at least eight Burkan-1s at Saudi Arabia in 2016 and early 2017. Some of missiles in question seem to have been created through repairs on missiles damaged during the first few weeks of the Saudi-led intervention. The work on them is undertaken under relatively primitive conditions and with rudimentary tools. Unsurprisingly, the first firing of a Burkan-2 – on the evening of Oct. 29, 2017 – failed. The missile malfunctioned and exploded high above Sa’ada. The second was the one that targeted King Khalid International on Nov. 4. The Houthis are perfectly capable of bombarding Saudi Arabia without Iran’s help. That said, the rebels do seem to be running out of rockets. The tempo of attacks seems to be slackening. The rebels might be launching rockets faster than they can build them. Equally bad for the Houthis, the Saudi-led coalition has destroyed at least four of the mobile launch ramps that the rebels use to fire R-17s, Hwasongs and Burkans.
hope that was a help
“….the missiles of the Houthis…….they are not from Iran….” The Us is blaming Iran anyway.
assuming you know what I said and answering me with an analysis is your first mistake. I never mentioned Iran you are the one who mentioning it. But since you mentioned it Iran does help the houthis not because the zioamericans are saying it, but because it is a fact and why not help them? They are allies.
You are largely correct. Yemeni military had a large inventory of Soviet weapons and their combat engineers are quite capable. As they say necessity is the mother of all inventions and the Yemenis had no choice but to adapt and innovate. They are now capable of sending drones as far away as the puppet Emirates. One classic case is the recently released footage of a Yemeni drones flying a few meters over the largest desalination plant in Saudi Arabia near Jeddah, this was warning that if Saudis don’t stop bombing Yemeni civilians, the Ansarallah will take out Saudi water supplies and in that dry part of the world, water is life.
there is only 1 Thing to say About this Evil satanic war against jemen…………….. this is the Translation to english of the brave houthi Slogan
” “God is the Greatest, Death to America, Death to Israel, Curse on the Jews, Victory to Islam”
Downing American drones is quite something. What’s there not to like?
The Yemeni military and its Ansarallah allies have improved their weaponry and military capabilities remarkably as conversely the Saudi idiots have proven to be operating at a retarded level despite thousands of mercenaries and total US and NATO puppets support. The Ansarallah have also made huge ground gains and are moving towards Aden, no wonder the CIA and Saudi puppet Hadi either lives in Riyadh or after the Yemeni drones have started showing up near Riyadh, the cowardly puppet Hadi has moved to a hospital in US.