Taliban seizes Afghan military’s ScanEagle UAS

A day after Taliban fighters took control of India-gifted Mi-35 attack helicopter (serial 123) operated by the Afghan Air Force, reports arose that claimed that the latter lost a ScanEagle Unmanned Aerial System (UAS) to them.

On 12 August 2021, Oryx Blog reported that the Taliban managed to get its hands on the drone after it was' left behind' by the Afghan Army in Kunduz.

Afghanistan has many of these UASs in its inventory. The latest Foreign Military Sale (FMS) order for fifteen ScanEagles for the country was placed in November 2020. An initial order for 65 UASs was placed in 2015 for USD 70,9 million, followed by subsequent orders for five in 2017 and 35 in 2018.

The ScanEagle is 5,1 feet long with a 5,6-foot wingspan. It weighs as much as 48,5 pounds and can carry a 7,5-pound sensor payload. The UAS can fly for more than 24 hours at altitudes as high as 19,500 feet, and at speeds up to 80 knots.

India handed over a pair of refurbished ex Belarus Air Force Mi-35s helicopters each in May 2019 and October 2019 to war-torn Afghanistan. In March 2018, Afghanistan, Belarus and India inked a trilateral pact for refurbished Mi-24/Mi-35 helicopters. According to the Afghan ambassador, Shaida Abdali, in an interview on Monday 23 March 2018, India paid for the four Mi-24/Mi-35 helicopters. Next to these refurbished former Belarus Mi-35s, India delivered four ex Indian Air Force Mi-35s to Afghanistan in 2015 and 2016.

Videos and photographs that surfaced on social media show Taliban moving around the Mi-35 at Kunduz air base. Rotor blades, and several other critical components of the helicopter appear to be missing. It is being speculated that the Afghan forces removed the parts from the helicopter anticipating defeat to the Taliban forces.