US Deploys $35K LUCAS Attack Drone

The United States used a Low‑cost Unmanned Combat Attack System (LUCAS), built by SpektreWorks and reverse‑engineered from Iran’s Shahed‑136, in confirmed strikes on Iran. The drone is cheap (~$35,000), light (≈180 lb MTOW), has ~500‑mile range, and carries a ~40‑lb warhead, making mass employment and export more feasible. — Major‑power adoption of low‑cost one‑way attack drones lowers the financial and political threshold for kinetic strikes, increases proliferation and escalation risks, and reshapes air‑power and deterrence debates.