US Downs Shahed with Ukraine-Tested Merops Drone

The US military downed an Iranian Shahed-type drone in Kuwait this week, marking the first combat interception by American forces using the Merops drone system. The $15,000 interceptor – developed by the US initiative Project Eagle – was previously tested and widely used by Ukrainian forces to destroy over 1,000 Russian-launched drones. The AI-equipped drone operates effectively in electronic warfare environments and is controlled via standard Xbox controllers.