Richard Lamb wrote:
interesting...

The rumor that a UAV was shot down and everybody assumes
it was some hich farmer with a blunderbuss.


From AvWeek -

The drone was transitioning from control by its General Atomics pilot
to an automatic flying mode, said Kostelnik, a former commander of the
USAF Armament Center. The drone dropped from 10,000 feet above ground
after a total system failure. An on-board fire or hostile attack are
not immediately suspected.

"It's pretty much destroyed, it's not going to be reparable," Kostelnik
said. CBP Air and Marine already is talking with General Atomics about
a "loaner" Predator.

No one was hurt by the crash in the air or on the ground, Kostelnik
said. A CBP-led team, with representatives from General Atomics, the
National Transportation Safety Board and possibly including the Air
Force, already is investigating the incident, but results won't be
known for several weeks, he said.

"It wasn't the thing going berserk and going away. It had some sort of
massive technical, mechanical failure, who knows," he said.