This is relatively old &quot;news&quot; and the problem has since been resolved. It had to do with the coating used on one of the coils interfering with the software--as the article mentions, there is no redundancy for this system. The part was supplied by a subcontractor. General Atomics [1] is VERY vertically integrated (even making servos) and uses few COTS parts. Engines (and components), unfortunately, are pretty difficult to make--many of the engines were initially purchased second hand.<p>Once the problem was diagnosed, fielding the solution is &#x2F; was another challenge. Some of these aircraft are in pretty remote areas.<p>These aircraft gained popularity and rapid adoption because they&#x27;re substantially less expensive and VASTLY quicker to manufacture than any other option. Almost all customers prioritized cost and acquisition speed over long term reliability, which of course comes with a certain amount of risk. Testing and certifying an airframe to standards is expensive and time consuming [2] but has the advantage of improving reliability.<p>Also, this is just hogwash journalism.<p>&gt; Last year, the Army reported four major drone crashes, each involving the Gray Eagle — a model identical to the Predator.<p>Warrior &#x2F; Gray Eagle &#x2F; MQ-1C [3] is a 40% payload increase over Predator &#x2F; MQ-1 [4] and the airframe was almost completely redesigned. Hell, the engine is even different. It&#x27;s a different aircraft.<p>[1] <a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;en.wikipedia.org&#x2F;wiki&#x2F;General_Atomics_Aeronautical_Systems" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;en.wikipedia.org&#x2F;wiki&#x2F;General_Atomics_Aeronautical_S...</a>
[2] <a href="http:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.ga-asi.com&#x2F;certifiable-predator-b" rel="nofollow">http:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.ga-asi.com&#x2F;certifiable-predator-b</a>
[3] <a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;en.wikipedia.org&#x2F;wiki&#x2F;General_Atomics_MQ-1C_Gray_Eagle" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;en.wikipedia.org&#x2F;wiki&#x2F;General_Atomics_MQ-1C_Gray_Eag...</a>
[4] <a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;en.wikipedia.org&#x2F;wiki&#x2F;General_Atomics_MQ-1_Predator" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;en.wikipedia.org&#x2F;wiki&#x2F;General_Atomics_MQ-1_Predator</a>