Designed by SpektreWorks for the US military, LUCAS costs $35,000, far cheaper than a conventional missile. It has been used since the opening salvos of the joint US-Israel strike on Iran, Operation Epic Fury, representing the first time in decades the US has so openly imitated an enemy's military hardware. The exact date of its first battlefield appearance and the specific Iranian militia members who captured the footage remain unclear, with no official US military confirmation on deployment details.
Compared to Iran's Shahed drones, which must be preprogrammed with a route and target before takeoff and cannot change course once launched, LUCAS offers advanced capabilities. According to Daily Mail - News, Chris Pleasance described that LUCAS can be operated by satellite, allowing the pilot to communicate over huge distances and see what the drone is seeing via a camera. This enables it to scan the battlefield for new targets once in the air, input new directions, and hit moving targets like tanks. Additionally, according to Daily Mail - News, Pleasance noted that LUCAS can talk to other nearby LUCAS drones via satellite relay, allowing them to coordinate as part of a swarm.
While the Shahed has to be preprogrammed with a route and a target before takeoff, and cannot change course once launched, the LUCAS can.
Physically, LUCAS is 10 feet long with a wingspan of eight feet, making it slightly smaller than the Shahed 136. It has a top speed of 115mph and a range of 500 miles, compared to 125mph and 1,500 miles for the Iranian model. LUCAS weighs 180lbs fully loaded, making it much lighter, quieter, and more versatile than the Shahed. According to Daily Mail - News, Pleasance described that its 40lb warhead can be swapped out for surveillance sensors or electronic warfare equipment, unlike the Shahed. The specific targets and outcomes of LUCAS attacks in Operation Epic Fury, as well as the number of drones produced or deployed, have not been disclosed.
That's because the satellite relay at the back of the drone allows the pilot to communicate with it over huge distances, and the camera at the front allows the pilot to see what the drone is seeing.
That means they can scan the battlefield for new targets, once LUCAS is in the air, and input new directions if they see something that's worth attacking more than the original target.
Equally, it means the LUCAS can also hit moving targets, like tanks. If the drone arrives at its target destination and the tank has moved, the pilot can simply steer the drone towards it.
But perhaps most significantly, this satellite relay also allows the LUCAS drone to talk to other nearby LUCAS drones. This allows the drones to coordinate with one another as part of a swarm, and it makes them way more powerful.
Up the front is the payload. This can be filled with 40 pounds of high explosive, which is designed to blow up whatever the drone flies into.
But it can also be swapped out for surveillance sensors to spy on enemies or electronic warfare equipment to mess with their electrics, another big difference with the Shahed.