Pentagon Puts Brakes on Sale of Gray Eagle Drones To Ukraine

Kimberly Johnson

Tuesday, June 21, 2022 at 03:50 PM ET

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A U.S. Army soldier ground guides a MQ-1C Gray Eagle unmanned aircraft system. [U.S. Army photo by Spc. Devin Fleming.]

Key Takeaways:

A White House plan to sell Ukraine four MQ-1C Gray Eagle armed combat drones has been halted following concerns from Pentagon officials.
The Pentagon's primary objection is the risk of sensitive radar and surveillance equipment on the drones falling into Russian hands.
Even if the current halt is resolved, the sale faces additional challenges including congressional approval, extensive operator training, and on-ground infrastructure requirements.
Despite the Gray Eagle delay, the U.S. has already provided Ukraine with other smaller combat drones like Switchblade and Phoenix Ghost, alongside Turkish Bayraktar TB2s.

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A White House plan to sell Ukraine four General Atomics MQ-1C Gray Eagle armed combat drones was halted following concerns by Pentagon officials, according to Reuters.

Earlier this month, the White House announced it was sending Ukraine additional military aid in the form of a drawdown of equipment from U.S. defense inventories, as well as $1 billion in security assistance in the form of artillery and coastal defense weapons. News of the aid in recent weeks came as the Biden Administration was reportedly shoring up plans to also sell four MQ-1C Gray Eagle combat drones to Ukraine. The Gray Eagle is capable of carrying up to four Hellfire missiles, and could provide armed intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) capabilities with added features of automatic takeoff and landing.