12/04/2012

Iran says it has seized U.S. drone; U.S. says it's not true

  • The drone was seized as it flew over the Persian Gulf, Iranian state media says
  • Iran's Revolutionary Guard says the drone was collecting data

Tehran, Iran (CNN) -- A unit from Iran's navy has captured a U.S. drone flying over the Persian Gulf, according to Iranian state media reports Tuesday.

The drone, which was collecting data, was captured immediately after entering Iranian airspace, Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps is cited as saying by the state-run news agency IRNA

The unmanned aerial device was a ScanEagle, Adm. Ali Fadavi, of the Revolutionary Guards, is quoted as saying.

The ScanEagle, with a wingspan of just over 10 feet, is designed to fly for 24 hours or more without refueling and can support extreme temperatures and high winds, according to its manufacturer.

The United States has not yet commented on the claim.

Iran's Press TV showed footage of what purported to be a drone.

Last month, the Pentagon said Iranian jets had fired on a U.S. drone as it flew off the Iranian coastline in the northern Persian Gulf.

The armed MQ-1 Predator was on a routine surveillance mission above international waters, 16 miles off the coast, the Defense Department said.

A year ago, a high-altitude RQ-170 Sentinel crashed in the Iranian desert after leaving an airbase in Afghanistan, U.S. officials said. Iranians claimed to have shot it down, and created a toy model of the drone to celebrate its capture.

No comments:

Post a Comment