An armed MQ-9 Reaper unmanned aerial vehicle sits in a shelter on Joint Base Balad, Iraq, Oct. 15, 2008, prior to a mission. Larger and more powerful than the MQ-1 Predator, the Reaper can carry up to 3,750 pounds of laser-guided bombs and Hellfire missiles. The Reaper is assigned to the 46th Expeditionary Reconnaissance and Attack Squadron. (DoD photo by Tech. Sgt. Erik Gudmundson, U.S. Air Force/Released)
