# US-Iran LUCAS drone development and recovery

> Live situation record from CLSTR: https://clstr.news/situations/us-iran-lucas-drone-development-and-recovery
> Updated: 2026-09-20T21:50:59.000Z. Sources: 17. Developments: 2.

Brigadier General Majid Mousavi of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Air Force claimed that the United States has developed a drone named LUCAS to mimic Iran’s Shahed-136. Mousavi noted that the U.S. has integrated this technology into its military arsenal, while reports suggested South Korea is also developing long-range kamikaze UAVs based on the LUCAS prototype.

Following these claims, a fishing crew in the Gulf of Mexico near Eglin Air Force Base recovered a large military drone. Eglin Air Force Base officials confirmed the aircraft was a LUCAS (Low-cost Unmanned Combat Attack System) drone that went down during routine scheduled testing on September 17. The device, manufactured by Arizona-based Spektreworks, is described as a U.S. military version of the Iranian-designed Shahed-136.

## Timeline

### 2026-09-20: Florida fishing crew recovers U.S. military drone

A Florida fishing crew recovered a U.S. military LUCAS drone, a low-cost clone of the Iranian Shahed-136, after it crashed during testing near Eglin Air Force Base.

15 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/us-military-drone-recovered-by-florida-fishing-crew

### 2026-09-13: Iran claims US developed LUCAS drone to mimic Shahed-136

An IRGC commander claims the US developed the LUCAS drone as a copy of Iran’s Shahed-136, with South Korea also reportedly developing UAVs based on the same US prototype.

2 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/iran-claims-us-developed-lucas-drone-to-mimic-shahed-136

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Cite as: US-Iran LUCAS drone development and recovery. CLSTR, https://clstr.news/situations/us-iran-lucas-drone-development-and-recovery